Today, there was an op-ed piece in The Globe and Mail by Jean Chrétien – a former Prime Minister of Canada (1993-2013). It’s his 91st birthday and he has decided to speak out about trump’s threats against Canada. He lays out ways in which Canada, and Canadians, are not Americans:

I can tell you Canadians prize our independence. We love our country. We have built something here that is the envy of the world – when it comes to compassion, understanding, tolerance and finding a way for people of different backgrounds and faiths to live together in harmony.

We’ve also built a strong social safety net – especially with public health care – that we are very proud of. It’s not perfect, but it’s based on the principle that the most vulnerable among us should be protected.

This may not be the “American Way” or “the Trump Way.” But it is the reality I have witnessed and lived my whole long life.

We all recognize the current stresses Canadians are dealing with regarding public health care and housing but the undergirding principle, “that the most vulnerable among us should be protected and helped“, is still a Canadian value. In spite of the large current influx of immigrants, “people of different backgrounds and faiths“, we’ve done our best to live in harmony in our diverse communities. We are, after all, a country of immigrants; everyone, but people from our First Nations, are here because our forebears came from somewhere else. We know we need more people to sustain and build a vibrant Canada; that means welcoming newcomers.

He goes on:

If you think that threatening and insulting us is going to win us over, you really don’t know a thing about us….We may look easy-going. Mild-mannered. But make no mistake, we have spine and toughness.

To present and future leaders of our country he has this to say:

…you don’t win a hockey game by only playing defence. We all know that even when we satisfy one demand, Mr. Trump will come back with another, bigger demand. That’s not diplomacy; it’s blackmail.

…we also have to play offence. Let’s tell Mr. Trump that we too have border issues with the United States. Canada has tough gun control legislation, but illegal guns are pouring in from the U.S. We need to tell him that we expect the United States to act to reduce the number of guns crossing into Canada.

He adds several more issues the US needs to resolve with Canada to hold up their side of the “friendship” relationship before ending with: 

Every time that Mr. Trump opens his mouth, he creates new allies for all of us. So let’s get organized! To fight back against a big, powerful bully, you need strength in numbers.

I am ready at the ramparts to help defend the independence of our country as I have done all my life.

Trump’s threats to Canadian sovereignty are not a joke! If we’re to survive the next several years, we’re all going to have to become more engaged in the national conversation as leaders do their best to defend the independence of Canada and work to make our community and country a better place!

I’m 82; I’m ready to join Mr. Chrétien “at the ramparts!” I’m reaching out to find people who feel it’s time for a network to tackle the big problems facing us. We don’t all have to live in the same place to work together; we just need common goals and strategies. Anybody interested in joining Mr. Chrétien and me?