The Cosmopolitan Blog

So my european experience continues… on the tube… aaaah, the british tube!  Actually, i’ll be honest, it took me a while to remember, it wasn’t called the subway like in NYC, it wasn’t called the metro like in Montreal, or the T like in boston. it’s the underground, or the tube in good ol’ England.

I remember hating it when i was growing up here. I remember thinking the stations were dirty & old looking, the trains were run down, and i just remember wishing that something, anything! would change or get updated.

I got to montreal & thought, waow, now this is nice. Read the rest of this entry »

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!

Part of the cosmopolitanism philosophy is the acceptance that no nation, culture or political model is better than another, that there are pros and cons for each, but that they each have a reason for existence. After all, each culture, nation and regime exists because it grew from a need for this ideology. If no one agreed with it, no one would adhere to it. There aren’t enough people in this world that can be mass-coerced to adhere. So should we be looking at the tribal way of life in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq (I mention them because they’re on our daily news, so I figure everyone knows where these countries are) and feel sorry for their backward way of life? I’m not sure.

Don’t get me wrong, I think the world is a better place without Saddam Hussein. I think that the tyrant deserved to be held accountable for his crimes. Should we show social responsibility by sticking around once we remove a dictator to ensure that the country will fall back on its feet? Possibly. But the very least we owe the citizens of that country is to see the world through their eyes. How did they get to this point? What motivated them to remain / accept this regime? Are you telling me that 25K+ Iraqi citizens have been sitting there praying for the brave westerners to rescue them? Really? Convince me, I dare you!

But we’re there now. So let’s see the world through their eyes for one moment. Can we honestly claim that democracy is a better regime that the country should aspire to establish? Why? Because it allows individuals to have their own rights and create their own wealth? Sure, that sounds like a good reason, and apparently, in the West, we believe it is, that’s why most western countries have adopted it. But why would be so arrogant as to believe that it will work best all over the world? Why do we think we’re doing other countries a favor by encouraging democracy?

It’s like criticizing woman in Islamic societies for wearing the hijab. Have you tried speaking to one of them and suggesting that they should be independant and non-submissive? Good luck with that! Yes, there will be a large number of them who will allow themselves to dream for a couple of seconds, and imaging the independant life they could be living, with their own goals and careers. And then they will submissively resign themselves to the current state of things. But! But, there’s a huge number of them will defend their choice and their way of life. They respect it and want it that way… It’s the way they’ve been brought out, to take care of the house and the family, and to think of the community before they think of their individual desires… And this is less noble than a career-minded western woman because….?????

I’m struggling to understand all of this… I should probably not think of the state of the world at 2am… *sigh*