The Cosmopolitan Blog

I love canada. it’s that simple. i’ve lived in 3 other countries in my life: UK, switzerland and the US. and you know what, Canada is awesome. everything about canada is inclusive, not exclusive. canadians are proud to welcome their new immigrants. canadians are proud of their country and are not always complaining about it (well, apart from its weather). canadians care about their environement as much as their care about their families. In the UK and in the US, these things are not the case. switzerland, on the other hand, compares to canada.

I listen to the news and look at what’s happenning in the US, and everything is so negative, the economy, the borders… listening to lou dobbs (why i do this to myself, is a whole other question), watching Pelosi’s daughter’s documentary today where a bunch of rednecks (they called themselves that, i didn’t) complained about how the world was changing so fast and they still wished black people weren’t heard from and women couldn’t vote… i can’t help but think… u know what? canada’s really figured something out.

i applied for immigration in 2003. the process took 8 months. in feb 04 i arrived at the montreal airport as a canadian resident. Then and there, the officer gave me documentation and flyers on where i could attend free classes on learning / integrating in canada, this included telling us how we could get our driving licenses, our health cards, our social insurance numbers… even the driving license process was fast and efficient, i just exchanged my massachussets license for my QC one. Later as a french citizen, i was sent the address of a joint french-quebec organization that helps french nationals find jobs in QC (yes, for free). Then, i applied for citizenship 3.5 years later, and was canadian before my 5th year living here. The process was fast, the ceremony was emotional and something i will remember forever. i got a certificate, a card, and a warm fuzzy feeling inside. and yesterday, i got an unexpected diploma.

seriously, how often can you say that a bureaucratic process was seamless from beginning to end? let’s take a moment and be grateful for well oiled, well run, efficient democracies with smart, caring and welcoming citizens. Congratulations Canada, you rock!

I have lived in Canada for nearly five years now, and in that time, I’ve seen THREE general elections. This is great, because it shows that the will of the people is alive and well (as opposed to other countries where too many elections is a symbol of instability). Why? Because the structure of the Canadian Government is simple, and it works. If, for some reason, it starts looking like it doesn’t work, then the people can question it, and another election is called.

Since i’ve been writing about American politics for so long, i figured, for those who read my blog, that i would force upon you a quick lesson on Canadian politics.

• 2 main parties: Conservatives and Liberals
• The leader of the winning party becomes Prime Minister (head of the Canadian government)
• There is no President, the official head of the country is the Queen of England, but She has no official power
• Anyone who wants to form a party can do so (for example, in Montreal there is the New Rhinoceros Party, a federal joke party that promised “not to keep any of its promises if elected”)

As a voter, you are part of an electoral region in your province (province = state for US readers), each region is small, never more than 10,000 people). You vote for any party available in your regions, and therefore for that party’s representative. The winner of each region (the one with the most votes) gets a seat in the House of Commons.

It’s that simple. You vote. The winning representative of your small area gets to go the Parliament and represent you. It’s as close to a “government of the people for the people” as one gets.

Since there are 308 regions in Canada, if a single party wins over 165 of them, they have a majority. If they win with less seats, they have a minority government, which means that the party with the second highest number of votes has a huge say in government, which, generally is seen as a good thing for Canadians: the leading party can’t enforce strong party bills and compromise is required. This is what happened today.

In 2006, Harper, the leader of the Conservatives, became the head of a minority government. A month ago, the liberals (the 2nd largest party) claimed “a loss of confidence” in the government (a way to keep the leading party on it’s toes) and called for general election. Today, Canadians voted well: they ensured that the minority government remained. 1 disappointment though: lowest turnout at the polling stations in Canadian History, only 59%, anything under 60% is considered poor turnout. Still, congrats Canada, you make it seem simple, and it should be.