The Written Word
for September 26, 2001

Does Canada have the right to feel snubbed because President George W. Bush didn’t mention us in his speech to the world?

The official version, from the usual suspects, is that there was no snub – that there was no need to mention us because we’re "family".

Some commentators have noted anti Americanism, as expressed on a recent CBC Online Show where Americans were slagged mercilessly, and see Mr Bush’s passing us over as a rebuke for this.

That’s not my take from where I sit.

Last Friday morning, after the President’s speech, I was at my post at CKNW. As an afterthought to my editorial I apologized to American listeners for the lack of enthusiasm by the Chretien government for meaningful support. Then I spoke to my colleague Philip Till who was reporting from New York. Phil, as hard bitten a war correspondent as you will find, choked back tears of anger as he expressed his disgust at Jean Chretien not having visited "ground zero" and for being noticeably absent from the Capitol on speech night. I decided to postpone my first guest to take half an hour of calls. The calls came so fast and furiously that we canceled all guests and let listeners fly at it.

The result was astonishing. Only one complained that Mr Bush had snubbed Canada and even he criticized the Prime Minister’s lack of action. Everyone else, mostly first time callers I might add, had two emotions – contempt for Mr Chretien and support for Mr Bush and Americans. Many wept. In addition, we received over 500 emails the vast majority of which agreed with the callers. Almost all were sickened by the fact that Mr Chretien hadn’t visited New York and most were bitterly angry that during the President’s speech they didn’t see their Prime Minister alongside Britain’s Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Are there two Canada’s here? Does one part hate at worst, resent at best Americans while the other loves them? I don’t know. All I can tell you is what I heard – loud and clear. And, it won’t surprise you to know, I have my own opinion.

Jean Chretien should have been in New York as soon as it was permissible. His excuse that he might have got in the way doesn’t wash. New York Mayor Rudy Guiliani made it clear he wanted leaders to see for themselves that which doesn’t really televise all that well. Mr Chretien should have done that to honour the Canadian dead and he should have done it to show that Canada and its government cares.

Mr Chretien should have been in the chamber when Mr Bush spoke. Whatever else he was doing paled into insignificance compared to him "showing the flag". This is something, of course, Mr Chretien doesn’t do well as his skiing trip, while Jordan’s King Hussein was being buried a couple of years back, demonstrates.

But there is another question – where the hell was the Governor-General? Why wasn’t she in New York the moment it was feasible? I thought that apart from being a place for Liberal governments to park their pals, this is what being governor-general was all about!

I charge the leadership of Canada, formal and political, with being derelict in their duty. I say that even if Mr Bush’s snub was an oversight he was entitled to do it deliberately.

There is anti-Americanism in Canada but contrary to what other commentators say, it’s not deep-seated but a surface antagonism only. Canadians, for the most part, listened to George Bush’s speech with tears in their eyes, sorrow in their hearts and steel in their resolve. In the meantime Canada’s government offered all aid short of actual help. We’re prepared to make all sacrifices demanded unless they amounted to tangible losses. In Winston Churchill’s apt phrase about the British government’s failure to stand up to Hitler, the Chretien government is "decided only to be undecided, resolved to be irresolute, adamant for drift, solid for fluidity, all powerful to be impotent". We will cheer like mad but will otherwise try to stay out of harm’s way.

Canadians – at least the ones I hear from – understand that the matter is as serious as Mr Bush says it is and they are way out in front of their gelatinous government in wanting to see Canada take its proper place on the front line.