Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Peter MacKay takes liberties with history in Bastille Day speech

Defence Minister Peter MacKay has been getting attention for what some are calling his novel reworking of the War of 1812 — one where the French were apparently fighting side-by-side with the British in battling the American invaders.

There is only one problem with that, say those who attended MacKay’s speech at the French embassy in Ottawa last week. The French supported the Americans in the War of 1812.

MacKay made his speech Friday as part of the embassy’s celebration of Bastille Day (the French national holiday) but reports are just now trickling out about the alleged gaffe. The Citizen received a number of emails from those who attended while MacLean’s magazine reported on the speech on Monday. Embassy magazine will have further details when it publishes on Wednesday.

MacKay praised France’s government and the contribution the French made to the War of 1812. “Suffice it to say in the 200th commemoration of the War of 1812, had the French not been here fighting side by side, we might be standing here next to each other in a new light,” MacKay told the audience, according to a tape recording made by Embassy.

But MacKay’s office said he didn’t make any gaffe. His office said he delivered a speech in English and French that touched “on the deep and unique bond that exists between Canada and France based on shared culture, values, history, and defence ties.”

“He also noted that French played key roles in the War of 1812 alongside Canadians whose mother tongue was English,” stated an email from MacKay’s office. “The Voltigeurs of Lower Canada were in fact predominantly French-speaking, and were instrumental in repelling American invaders at the Battle of Chateauguay in 1813.”

MacLean’s magazine suggested that might be the route MacKay would take to escape any embarrassment.

“It will take some creative spinning to argue MacKay had a clue what he was talking about,” noted Michael Petrou, the magazine’s foreign affairs writer. “French Canadians fought hard and well against the American invasion of Canada, notably at the Battle of the Chateauguay. But these men were generations removed from France and showed it little loyalty. The biggest effect France had on their lives was that when Napoleon took on Britain, America felt emboldened to go to war against them.”

The Conservative government is highlighting the War of 1812 as a defining moment in Canadian history. The eventual success in fighting back the American invaders “laid the foundation for Confederation and the emergence of our country as an independent and free nation,” according to James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage.

It’s not the first time a MacKay gaffe has been noticed. Last year a video posted on YouTube showed MacKay telling former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger that California and British Columbia have a “shared border.”

Schwarzenegger later politely pointed out that the states of Oregon and Washington are located between California and B.C.

Original Article
Source: ottawa citizen
Author:  DAVID PUGLIESE

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