The Canadian trucker movement gave this Midwestern American hope in a dark time. Maybe Trump's win will encourage Canadians to stand up again and vote Trudeau out.
I understand your longing for an aspirational more positive America but I can’t help but see it as naive. There is always a dark underbelly regardless of how pristine the presentation is. I also find myself losing trust in the media. Confirmation bias is a bitch and people have a tendency to find ways to confirm their own beliefs and project it to the world as truth. Also much of the media is being puppetted by powerful people with their own agendas in mind. I think this point in American history is a something like a purging. All of the angst and agitation that was hidden under a guise of brotherhood and neighborliness has come to surface. When it’s run its course, only then will the final product be revealed.
There is always a dark underbelly to be sure. My message here is not that "blind patriotism cures all," in fact I believe I accounted for the dangers of it in describing how it was weaponized by Republicans in Dubya's era.
Rather, it's that it's a far better idea to take pride in your accomplishments while acknowledging your mistakes than to engage in this bizarre cult of shame and self-flagellation that the left now seems determined to mandate.
A generally positive outlook doesn't require us to go all the way to the other extreme.
Yes! We are more alike than we are different. Indeed, the top five vote-getters in the 2024 US Presidential election were, in order: a former Democrat, a current Democrat, a former Democrat, a former Democrat who wasn’t even running, and a former Democrat. I particularly liked the points about patriotism. I hope we can all aim at patriotism-without-gloating.
Yes this echoes my experience very well. I am in NZ and we have recently got a much more based government and things are improving with the help of our Free Speech Union but our local media is very bad with tiny exceptions. Canada with Trudeau seems like a country going quickly in the wrong direction. Jordan Peterson warned about forced speech back before Covid. You badly need a real change of Government and the US is a beacon of hope in that regard. Thanks Holly, love your style/ethos/attitude to the world. Proud to give my little bit of support. There is now such a great choice of alternative media that it is hard to decide where to put my small contribution.
Very well done article. Thanks for sharing cousin! I grew up into politics about the same time you did it seems. I had a very similar experience, albeit from an American perspective. Looking back, it seems absurd that my country went from a patriotic union to divided chaos where respective legacy media personalities floated the idea of a civil war… over identity issues! Fuck.
I felt the election vindicated my own experience. Turns out I’m not alone in that. I knew Trump had a shot at winning. And I thought that the polls weren’t equally representing national opinions. But to see Trump win so decidedly, winning by 5 million votes and taking the popular vote (pretty sure the first republican to win such a majority since Reagan’s 1st election). So cheers to the not dead American Spirit! And I agree, hopefully it will inspire more moderate voices for our neighbors to the north.
Thank you for sharing your perspective, my Canadian friend. I’m encouraged by your positive and hopeful attitude. I hope you’re right, and that this election will signal an end to wokeness and a return to American patriotism, but not arrogance.
You could replace Canadian with almost any other “western” nationality from Germany to New Zealand when you write about how shocked they are that Trump won. And it isn’t just the ordinary citizens, it’s the leaders too. Watching politicians from all these countries try to scrub the record of all the times they insulted trump is without doubt one of the joys of the last few days
The Aussie Ambassador Kevin Rudd has made himself look particularly stupid. He is a former multi-term Prime Minister serving in the nation's most important diplomatic posting. Ironically a career diplomat would not have made such a mistake.
Yep. That is almost as funny as the way the British Labour government are busily trying to simultaneously suck up to Trump and reassure their supporters that OrangeManBad
American patriotism, much else in the West, has been demonized. What we could call Wokeism might have started out a benevolent ideology, again like much else, has been weaponized, used to deracinate and socially atomize society and individuals in it, and further to act as a distraction to the growing poverty, massive corruption, and multiple crises of competence in almost everything.
People often talk about the left or the right, liberalism, conservatism, leftism, capitalism, even communism as The Enemy or The Evil, when really, it is more about relatively small groups of people, most often the wealthy and those who opportunistically serve them, destroying and consuming our collective Western Civilization and by extension, the rest of the Earth for profit and ego gratification (entertainment?). It is easy to oversimplify things, but ultimately, this is what feels most true to me. Our entire world is a gigantic abattoir run by a class of Judas goats, who often do not realize that they are such goats.
I knew there were rational Canadians! However, I fear that it is a long road to the place you wish us to be. Another factor is that the left will fight twice as hard in 2028 to regain what they view as their rightful place as the conscience (I would say nanny) of America. I hope that the next four years shows many waffling Democrats how their party has lost its way.
From 1973 (over 50 years ago!).
From Canada.
There is nothing new under the sun.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4i3LmR0K74
The Canadian trucker movement gave this Midwestern American hope in a dark time. Maybe Trump's win will encourage Canadians to stand up again and vote Trudeau out.
It's coming.
Fantastic.
I 💯 agree with this and wholeheartedly support his point of view.
Thanks for sharing!
I understand your longing for an aspirational more positive America but I can’t help but see it as naive. There is always a dark underbelly regardless of how pristine the presentation is. I also find myself losing trust in the media. Confirmation bias is a bitch and people have a tendency to find ways to confirm their own beliefs and project it to the world as truth. Also much of the media is being puppetted by powerful people with their own agendas in mind. I think this point in American history is a something like a purging. All of the angst and agitation that was hidden under a guise of brotherhood and neighborliness has come to surface. When it’s run its course, only then will the final product be revealed.
There is always a dark underbelly to be sure. My message here is not that "blind patriotism cures all," in fact I believe I accounted for the dangers of it in describing how it was weaponized by Republicans in Dubya's era.
Rather, it's that it's a far better idea to take pride in your accomplishments while acknowledging your mistakes than to engage in this bizarre cult of shame and self-flagellation that the left now seems determined to mandate.
A generally positive outlook doesn't require us to go all the way to the other extreme.
Yes! We are more alike than we are different. Indeed, the top five vote-getters in the 2024 US Presidential election were, in order: a former Democrat, a current Democrat, a former Democrat, a former Democrat who wasn’t even running, and a former Democrat. I particularly liked the points about patriotism. I hope we can all aim at patriotism-without-gloating.
I’ve only seen this level of detail for my own County, but here at any rate [undervote] was a solid 3rd place.
Yes this echoes my experience very well. I am in NZ and we have recently got a much more based government and things are improving with the help of our Free Speech Union but our local media is very bad with tiny exceptions. Canada with Trudeau seems like a country going quickly in the wrong direction. Jordan Peterson warned about forced speech back before Covid. You badly need a real change of Government and the US is a beacon of hope in that regard. Thanks Holly, love your style/ethos/attitude to the world. Proud to give my little bit of support. There is now such a great choice of alternative media that it is hard to decide where to put my small contribution.
I hope we can be a bright spot for everyone who needs it. I hope you all get your freedoms back in full. ✨️
Great article. I enjoyed the read.
Very well done article. Thanks for sharing cousin! I grew up into politics about the same time you did it seems. I had a very similar experience, albeit from an American perspective. Looking back, it seems absurd that my country went from a patriotic union to divided chaos where respective legacy media personalities floated the idea of a civil war… over identity issues! Fuck.
I felt the election vindicated my own experience. Turns out I’m not alone in that. I knew Trump had a shot at winning. And I thought that the polls weren’t equally representing national opinions. But to see Trump win so decidedly, winning by 5 million votes and taking the popular vote (pretty sure the first republican to win such a majority since Reagan’s 1st election). So cheers to the not dead American Spirit! And I agree, hopefully it will inspire more moderate voices for our neighbors to the north.
Change is coming up here, too. It's only a matter of time.
Yup, yup, and yup...
Thank you for sharing your perspective, my Canadian friend. I’m encouraged by your positive and hopeful attitude. I hope you’re right, and that this election will signal an end to wokeness and a return to American patriotism, but not arrogance.
You could replace Canadian with almost any other “western” nationality from Germany to New Zealand when you write about how shocked they are that Trump won. And it isn’t just the ordinary citizens, it’s the leaders too. Watching politicians from all these countries try to scrub the record of all the times they insulted trump is without doubt one of the joys of the last few days
The Aussie Ambassador Kevin Rudd has made himself look particularly stupid. He is a former multi-term Prime Minister serving in the nation's most important diplomatic posting. Ironically a career diplomat would not have made such a mistake.
Yep. That is almost as funny as the way the British Labour government are busily trying to simultaneously suck up to Trump and reassure their supporters that OrangeManBad
👏👏👏
American patriotism, much else in the West, has been demonized. What we could call Wokeism might have started out a benevolent ideology, again like much else, has been weaponized, used to deracinate and socially atomize society and individuals in it, and further to act as a distraction to the growing poverty, massive corruption, and multiple crises of competence in almost everything.
People often talk about the left or the right, liberalism, conservatism, leftism, capitalism, even communism as The Enemy or The Evil, when really, it is more about relatively small groups of people, most often the wealthy and those who opportunistically serve them, destroying and consuming our collective Western Civilization and by extension, the rest of the Earth for profit and ego gratification (entertainment?). It is easy to oversimplify things, but ultimately, this is what feels most true to me. Our entire world is a gigantic abattoir run by a class of Judas goats, who often do not realize that they are such goats.
I knew there were rational Canadians! However, I fear that it is a long road to the place you wish us to be. Another factor is that the left will fight twice as hard in 2028 to regain what they view as their rightful place as the conscience (I would say nanny) of America. I hope that the next four years shows many waffling Democrats how their party has lost its way.
As a Canadian I heartily agree on every point!
And now to get rid of Trudeau!