How I became a real Canadian - The Globe and Mail: "Will future generations of Canadians continue to believe that the wilderness is central to our identity? I'm not sure. Will it ever even occur to the kids of newcomers from Pakistan or China to have sex in a canoe? I have no idea. What I can tell you is that, in the interest of research, I tried it once myself. Like most wilderness experiences, it involved a fair degree of inconvenience, effort and discomfort. But I didn't mind. At last I knew I was Canadian."
Showing posts with label margaret wente. Show all posts
Showing posts with label margaret wente. Show all posts
Friday, August 6, 2010
The revenge of Conrad Black - The Globe and Mail
(c) 2010 F. Bruce Abel
I like Margaret Wente on a beautiful 7:30 am morning in Cottage Country. She writes for adults. I've liked her ever since she wrote hilariously last July that she had had sex in a canoe ( http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/how-i-became-a-real-canadian/article1199231/ and see earlier blog)
Herein her column today on Canadian Corporate Baron and criminal Conrad Black.
The revenge of Conrad Black - The Globe and Mail: "Dear Lord Black,
Please forgive us. The envious, spiteful media mob was wrong, wrong, wrong about you all along. We hereby take it back. You are not a corporate kleptocrat. You are the victim of prosecutorial vigilantes and corporate-governance terrorists run amok, who railroaded an innocent man for their own self-aggrandizement. That dreadful law they used to throw you behind bars? Garbage! Every single judge on the Supreme Court said so. We’ve been insufferably smug and arrogant – labels we once applied to you. But now the schadenfreude is on the other foot."
I like Margaret Wente on a beautiful 7:30 am morning in Cottage Country. She writes for adults. I've liked her ever since she wrote hilariously last July that she had had sex in a canoe ( http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/how-i-became-a-real-canadian/article1199231/ and see earlier blog)
A Canadian is someone who knows how to have sex in a canoe, -- Pierre Berton
Herein her column today on Canadian Corporate Baron and criminal Conrad Black.
The revenge of Conrad Black - The Globe and Mail: "Dear Lord Black,
Please forgive us. The envious, spiteful media mob was wrong, wrong, wrong about you all along. We hereby take it back. You are not a corporate kleptocrat. You are the victim of prosecutorial vigilantes and corporate-governance terrorists run amok, who railroaded an innocent man for their own self-aggrandizement. That dreadful law they used to throw you behind bars? Garbage! Every single judge on the Supreme Court said so. We’ve been insufferably smug and arrogant – labels we once applied to you. But now the schadenfreude is on the other foot."
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Constant Possession of a Vagina
(c) 2010 F. Bruce Abel
My thoughts about Margaret Wente resemble those of Steve Martin in the following favorite of mine from The New Yorker:
Natural Gas Guru: Search results for steve martin: "It's easy to understand how one physical thing can influence another physical thing: my car hit your car because I was blinded by your shiny hair barrette. But what about emotional causality? Can my harsh words affect your mood, costing you millions of dollars that you would have earned behind the counter at Burger King? Apparently so. Several months ago, a male office worker was awarded sixty-seven thousand dollars because a female co-worker asked him if he would like her to drop his 'package' off at the post office; he was further awarded fifty thousand dollars after arguing that she was also in constant possession of a vagina, the knowledge of which rendered him unable to concentrate."
My thoughts about Margaret Wente resemble those of Steve Martin in the following favorite of mine from The New Yorker:
Natural Gas Guru: Search results for steve martin: "It's easy to understand how one physical thing can influence another physical thing: my car hit your car because I was blinded by your shiny hair barrette. But what about emotional causality? Can my harsh words affect your mood, costing you millions of dollars that you would have earned behind the counter at Burger King? Apparently so. Several months ago, a male office worker was awarded sixty-seven thousand dollars because a female co-worker asked him if he would like her to drop his 'package' off at the post office; he was further awarded fifty thousand dollars after arguing that she was also in constant possession of a vagina, the knowledge of which rendered him unable to concentrate."
How I became a real Canadian - The Globe and Mail
How I became a real Canadian - The Globe and Mail:
Margaret Wente:
"A Canadian is someone who knows how to have sex in a canoe.
–Pierre Berton
Thirty years ago, in 1979, I became a Canadian citizen. I stood up in citizenship court, along with dozens of complete strangers, and pledged an oath to the Queen. I had it easy. Most of them had crossed an ocean and learned a new language; I had merely crossed a border. Afterward, we all shook hands, and I cried.
The next step, obviously, was to have sex in a canoe."
Margaret Wente:
"A Canadian is someone who knows how to have sex in a canoe.
–Pierre Berton
Thirty years ago, in 1979, I became a Canadian citizen. I stood up in citizenship court, along with dozens of complete strangers, and pledged an oath to the Queen. I had it easy. Most of them had crossed an ocean and learned a new language; I had merely crossed a border. Afterward, we all shook hands, and I cried.
The next step, obviously, was to have sex in a canoe."
Wente -- Good Today
(c) 2010 F. Bruce Abel
Margaret Wente is one of my favorites out of The Globe and Mail. Today I agree with her about economists and deregulation and the two "oopes" of the past week: EU and BP:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/the-age-of-the-big-blow-up/article1563929/
Oh her picture is pretty and I always imagine her having sex in a canoe up in the north woods. (Click on Wente and see earlier blog with her story on same).
Margaret Wente is one of my favorites out of The Globe and Mail. Today I agree with her about economists and deregulation and the two "oopes" of the past week: EU and BP:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/the-age-of-the-big-blow-up/article1563929/
Oh her picture is pretty and I always imagine her having sex in a canoe up in the north woods. (Click on Wente and see earlier blog with her story on same).
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Wente -- Morality Play re Cycling in Toronto
(c) 2009 F. Bruce Abel
Margaret Wente returns to comment on the Toronto cycling incident that left one dead and a politician's career in shreds.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/morality-play-and-a-stampede-to-judgment/article1281262/
Margaret Wente returns to comment on the Toronto cycling incident that left one dead and a politician's career in shreds.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/morality-play-and-a-stampede-to-judgment/article1281262/
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Margaret Wente -- Trouble in Paradise
This reminds me of the battle over in Terrace Park over the blasting-to-be in Clermont County:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/theres-trouble-in-paradise/article1238257/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/theres-trouble-in-paradise/article1238257/
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Margaret Wente -- Today's Globe & Mail
It's fairly ordinary today on an important topic, but she's on my beat to some extent:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/guilty-of-unconscious-racism/article1232881/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/guilty-of-unconscious-racism/article1232881/
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Margaret Wente -- Driving While Cell Phoned
Column Comments (20)
Margaret Wente
Last updated on Thursday, Jul. 23, 2009 12:12AM EDT
Not long ago, I nearly killed myself in the line of duty. I remembered that I had to call my editor before I left town. Unfortunately, I was behind the wheel in heavy traffic at the time. The last thing my editor heard was my husband yelling “Watch out” as I almost sideswiped a car zooming up beside us.
My husband also likes to multitask behind the wheel. He likes to clutch his cup of coffee, fasten his seat belt and check in with the office all at the same time. It makes him feel efficient. If I dare to raise an eyebrow, he reminds me of the time I nearly killed us.
Everyone knows cellphones and driving are a hazardous mix. Ontario (along with several other provinces) has even passed a law to ban the use of hand-held devices while driving. As of next fall, people caught talking or texting could face a $500 fine. This is a clever way of pretending to improve road safety while not actually doing so. Hands-free phones will still be legal, despite a mound of evidence that shows they're no safer than the hand-held kind.
“It's not that your hands aren't on the wheel,” says cognitive psychologist David Strayer. “It's that your mind is not on the road.” For years, he's been putting people in simulated driving situations to find out what happens when they're distracted. He's found that talking on a cellphone increases the chance of having an accident by about four times. That's about the same risk level as driving drunk.
I'd never think of driving drunk. But I often think of calling Mom. That's what I was doing the day I turned left (on a red light I didn't see) across four lanes of traffic. I felt like a moron. Then there's the guy I know who rear-ended another car while thumbing his BlackBerry. Judging by what I observe every day, our stories aren't unusual. I now steer clear of cellphone yakkers even when they're on foot. Last spring, a young woman on a cellphone stepped out into downtown Toronto traffic and was run over by a van.
None of this is news. Canadian researcher Donald Redelmeier reported exactly the same findings back in 1997. U.S. highway safety researchers estimated that, in 2002, cellphone use by drivers caused 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents. According to The New York Times, the research was suppressed. Since then, every piece of legislation designed to restrict cellphones has merely nibbled around the edges. Even Canada's various medical associations can't bring themselves to call for a blanket ban. After all, legislators and doctors love their cellphones, too.
Today, more than 21 million Canadians use cellphones. Use is heaviest among the heavily connected upper middle class. We are convinced we could not survive without them. We insist we need to use them in the car to be productive workers and good parents. According to one study, four-fifths of cellphone owners say they use their phones while driving, and one-fifth confess to driving while texting. Another study found that, during daytime hours, 11 per cent of all drivers on the road are on the phone at any given time.
Safety groups keep arguing for an outright ban on phoning while driving. But it's far too late. We're too addicted. We're hopelessly dependent on our gadgets. We thrive on self-induced attention deficit disorder. Every time we phone or thumb or text or Twitter, we get what Harvard psychiatrist John Ratey calls a dopamine squirt. Our kids are even more hooked than we are. If they can't send a text message twice a minute, they go into withdrawal.
As for me, I've sworn off using my phone in the car for the time being. I want to live. The trouble is that the bandwidth available to us is infinite, but the bandwidth of our brains is not.
Join the Discussion:Sorted by: Oldest firstNewest to Oldest Oldest to Newest Most thumbs-up More recent pieces from Margaret Wente
Too much faith in mass screening Monday, Jul. 20, 2009 07:11PM EDT
Does all this testing for cancer make a difference?
Enviro-romanticism is hurting Africa Friday, Jul. 17, 2009 04:58PM EDT
My friends would be horrified to learn their convictions are keeping children hungry
Someone will have to pay for a two-tier job system Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2009 06:49PM EDT
The compensation gap between the public and private sectors is growing ever wider
In Sonia v. Sarah, GOP is doomed Monday, Jul. 13, 2009 06:53PM EDT
The Bronx judge, the Alaska pin-up girl and the Republican Party
Organic tastes good, but better for us? No Friday, Jul. 10, 2009 06:51PM EDT
If you want to heal the land, it helps to be well-heeled. Let's just rethink what we eat
Freak or hero, it's all showbiz Wednesday, Jul. 08, 2009 06:06PM EDT
The massive public grief over Michael Jackson is no surprise
Health care diagnosis: sick, sick, sick Monday, Jul. 06, 2009 06:47PM EDT
The problem in a nutshell is that North Americans don't understand the true costs of health care
Is your sanity at stake? Friday, Jul. 03, 2009 06:55PM EDT
If you haven't been diagnosed with a mental disorder, there must be something wrong with you
Tim Hudak: Drop the Harris bit Thursday, Jul. 02, 2009 12:00AM EDTLatest Comments
Paul_Toronto 7/23/2009 6:05:43 AM
Safety groups keep arguing for an outright ban on phoning while driving. But it's far too late. We're too addicted. We're hopelessly dependent on our gadgets. We thrive on self-induced attention deficit disorder. Every time we phone or thumb or text or Twitter, we get what Harvard psychiatrist John Ratey calls a dopamine squirt. Our kids are even more hooked than we are. If they can't send a text message twice a minute, they go into withdrawal.
----
So what is exactly the argument made here then. Of course you are a bonehead if you distract yourself when you are driving, of course it is a hazard to yourself and others, and of course it should be banned. Who gives a damn if people's attention span has been reduce to that of a gnat's and the are "addicted" to their devices?
Why can't she just call for a ban? What I find infuriating is how some morons will say it is a restriction on a "freedom". As Oliver Wendell Holmes said: "The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins." If you want to drive a car, you have to agree to certain rules. People accept now that a seatbelt is more likely than not to save your life. Some moron will insist this is a restriction on his freedom, but tough. You want to drive, that's the rule. Same with cellphones. Ban them, period. 1 0 Report Abuse
manitouanne 7/23/2009 6:05:15 AM
Dear Peggy: we all have both the Globe and Mail and the New York Times on our Mac Bookmarks Bars; you'll have to work a little harder to retain our loyalty. 0 0 Report Abuse
Art Luscombe 7/23/2009 5:50:27 AM
As distasteful as it is to some, what Ms. Wente says in this article needed to be said and needs to be said in a lot more places. I'm not saying that certain activities while driving a car should be banned, but I am saying that distractions of any type, while driving a car, are a serious hazard to your health and to the health of others. And that needs to be said. 1 0 Report Abuse
SeeJayTO 7/23/2009 5:11:41 AM
check out maureen dowd's column in the new york times this week. then see who wrote what first. in fact, check out the times's recent series of articles on cell phone use and driving. dowd beats wente by at least a day ... happens a lot. 0 1Report Abuse
DrSatan 7/23/2009 5:09:34 AM
The difference between the cell phone conversation and the conversation with someone in the car is simply the person in the passenger seat has a vested interest in the driver's actions.
Margaret Wente
Last updated on Thursday, Jul. 23, 2009 12:12AM EDT
Not long ago, I nearly killed myself in the line of duty. I remembered that I had to call my editor before I left town. Unfortunately, I was behind the wheel in heavy traffic at the time. The last thing my editor heard was my husband yelling “Watch out” as I almost sideswiped a car zooming up beside us.
My husband also likes to multitask behind the wheel. He likes to clutch his cup of coffee, fasten his seat belt and check in with the office all at the same time. It makes him feel efficient. If I dare to raise an eyebrow, he reminds me of the time I nearly killed us.
Everyone knows cellphones and driving are a hazardous mix. Ontario (along with several other provinces) has even passed a law to ban the use of hand-held devices while driving. As of next fall, people caught talking or texting could face a $500 fine. This is a clever way of pretending to improve road safety while not actually doing so. Hands-free phones will still be legal, despite a mound of evidence that shows they're no safer than the hand-held kind.
“It's not that your hands aren't on the wheel,” says cognitive psychologist David Strayer. “It's that your mind is not on the road.” For years, he's been putting people in simulated driving situations to find out what happens when they're distracted. He's found that talking on a cellphone increases the chance of having an accident by about four times. That's about the same risk level as driving drunk.
I'd never think of driving drunk. But I often think of calling Mom. That's what I was doing the day I turned left (on a red light I didn't see) across four lanes of traffic. I felt like a moron. Then there's the guy I know who rear-ended another car while thumbing his BlackBerry. Judging by what I observe every day, our stories aren't unusual. I now steer clear of cellphone yakkers even when they're on foot. Last spring, a young woman on a cellphone stepped out into downtown Toronto traffic and was run over by a van.
None of this is news. Canadian researcher Donald Redelmeier reported exactly the same findings back in 1997. U.S. highway safety researchers estimated that, in 2002, cellphone use by drivers caused 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents. According to The New York Times, the research was suppressed. Since then, every piece of legislation designed to restrict cellphones has merely nibbled around the edges. Even Canada's various medical associations can't bring themselves to call for a blanket ban. After all, legislators and doctors love their cellphones, too.
Today, more than 21 million Canadians use cellphones. Use is heaviest among the heavily connected upper middle class. We are convinced we could not survive without them. We insist we need to use them in the car to be productive workers and good parents. According to one study, four-fifths of cellphone owners say they use their phones while driving, and one-fifth confess to driving while texting. Another study found that, during daytime hours, 11 per cent of all drivers on the road are on the phone at any given time.
Safety groups keep arguing for an outright ban on phoning while driving. But it's far too late. We're too addicted. We're hopelessly dependent on our gadgets. We thrive on self-induced attention deficit disorder. Every time we phone or thumb or text or Twitter, we get what Harvard psychiatrist John Ratey calls a dopamine squirt. Our kids are even more hooked than we are. If they can't send a text message twice a minute, they go into withdrawal.
As for me, I've sworn off using my phone in the car for the time being. I want to live. The trouble is that the bandwidth available to us is infinite, but the bandwidth of our brains is not.
Join the Discussion:Sorted by: Oldest firstNewest to Oldest Oldest to Newest Most thumbs-up More recent pieces from Margaret Wente
Too much faith in mass screening Monday, Jul. 20, 2009 07:11PM EDT
Does all this testing for cancer make a difference?
Enviro-romanticism is hurting Africa Friday, Jul. 17, 2009 04:58PM EDT
My friends would be horrified to learn their convictions are keeping children hungry
Someone will have to pay for a two-tier job system Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2009 06:49PM EDT
The compensation gap between the public and private sectors is growing ever wider
In Sonia v. Sarah, GOP is doomed Monday, Jul. 13, 2009 06:53PM EDT
The Bronx judge, the Alaska pin-up girl and the Republican Party
Organic tastes good, but better for us? No Friday, Jul. 10, 2009 06:51PM EDT
If you want to heal the land, it helps to be well-heeled. Let's just rethink what we eat
Freak or hero, it's all showbiz Wednesday, Jul. 08, 2009 06:06PM EDT
The massive public grief over Michael Jackson is no surprise
Health care diagnosis: sick, sick, sick Monday, Jul. 06, 2009 06:47PM EDT
The problem in a nutshell is that North Americans don't understand the true costs of health care
Is your sanity at stake? Friday, Jul. 03, 2009 06:55PM EDT
If you haven't been diagnosed with a mental disorder, there must be something wrong with you
Tim Hudak: Drop the Harris bit Thursday, Jul. 02, 2009 12:00AM EDTLatest Comments
Paul_Toronto 7/23/2009 6:05:43 AM
Safety groups keep arguing for an outright ban on phoning while driving. But it's far too late. We're too addicted. We're hopelessly dependent on our gadgets. We thrive on self-induced attention deficit disorder. Every time we phone or thumb or text or Twitter, we get what Harvard psychiatrist John Ratey calls a dopamine squirt. Our kids are even more hooked than we are. If they can't send a text message twice a minute, they go into withdrawal.
----
So what is exactly the argument made here then. Of course you are a bonehead if you distract yourself when you are driving, of course it is a hazard to yourself and others, and of course it should be banned. Who gives a damn if people's attention span has been reduce to that of a gnat's and the are "addicted" to their devices?
Why can't she just call for a ban? What I find infuriating is how some morons will say it is a restriction on a "freedom". As Oliver Wendell Holmes said: "The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins." If you want to drive a car, you have to agree to certain rules. People accept now that a seatbelt is more likely than not to save your life. Some moron will insist this is a restriction on his freedom, but tough. You want to drive, that's the rule. Same with cellphones. Ban them, period. 1 0 Report Abuse
manitouanne 7/23/2009 6:05:15 AM
Dear Peggy: we all have both the Globe and Mail and the New York Times on our Mac Bookmarks Bars; you'll have to work a little harder to retain our loyalty. 0 0 Report Abuse
Art Luscombe 7/23/2009 5:50:27 AM
As distasteful as it is to some, what Ms. Wente says in this article needed to be said and needs to be said in a lot more places. I'm not saying that certain activities while driving a car should be banned, but I am saying that distractions of any type, while driving a car, are a serious hazard to your health and to the health of others. And that needs to be said. 1 0 Report Abuse
SeeJayTO 7/23/2009 5:11:41 AM
check out maureen dowd's column in the new york times this week. then see who wrote what first. in fact, check out the times's recent series of articles on cell phone use and driving. dowd beats wente by at least a day ... happens a lot. 0 1Report Abuse
DrSatan 7/23/2009 5:09:34 AM
The difference between the cell phone conversation and the conversation with someone in the car is simply the person in the passenger seat has a vested interest in the driver's actions.
Friday, July 17, 2009
I Found it! The Article in the Globe & Mail I Read About Sex in a Canoe in Canada
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Margaret Wente
How I became a real Canadian
The authentic soul of Canada is in the wilderness. Trouble is, you need a paddle and indoor plumbing
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Margaret Wente
Last updated on Friday, Jul. 03, 2009 03:24AM EDT
A Canadian is someone who knows how to have sex in a canoe.
–Pierre Berton
Thirty years ago, in 1979, I became a Canadian citizen. I stood up in citizenship court, along with dozens of complete strangers, and pledged an oath to the Queen. I had it easy. Most of them had crossed an ocean and learned a new language; I had merely crossed a border. Afterward, we all shook hands, and I cried.
The next step, obviously, was to have sex in a canoe.
I was determined to become a real Canadian. I deliberately toned down my Midwestern accent (“I'm from Chicawgo”). I learned the difference between Saint John and St. John's. I discovered that “roof” doesn't rhyme with “woof,” and that “chesterfield” is not a cigarette. I enthusiastically sprinkled my spelling with random u's.
But I soon learned that the authentic soul of Canada is in the wilderness. Just ask Margaret Atwood (or my pal Roy MacGregor). If you want to feel truly Canadian, you've got to get out there and learn to paddle a canoe.
So I set out to make up for lost time.
My first canoe trip in Canada was through Algonquin Park. How iconic is that? Pristine lakes, gorgeous sunsets, whispering pines. I was young and in love. My love object and I would pitch our tent under the Milky Way and listen to the call of the loons.
It didn't quite work out as planned. We hadn't foreseen the bugs, the rain or the beer-logged louts on the next island who were obviously not interested in the transcendent beauty of the landscape. By the time we'd found a vacant campsite, pitched our tent and devoured our soggy dinner, I was feeling rather snappish. Once again, I learned that sleeping on the ground is highly overrated. In the middle of the night, we were woken by an awful racket. Bears? No. It was raccoons, helping themselves to our food, which had been carefully strung on a line between two trees. Perhaps they'd formed a raccoon pyramid to get at it. My beloved companion grabbed the first projectile that came to hand and launched it at them. It was my canoe paddle. It hit a tree and broke.
Margaret Atwood would have had an extra paddle. We did not. Nor did we have extra food. The next morning, we bundled our hungry selves into our canoe. I huddled in the bow against a ferocious headwind as my former love object tried to paddle us back to the parking lot.
We broke up soon after that. But my fitful romance with the wilderness endured. I even travelled down the Nahanni, one of the most glorious rivers in Canada. I can't tell you much about the scenery, though. Soon after we set out, it began to snow. (It was August.) The snow turned to rain and fog that soaked our clothes and lingered throughout the week. Just as we reached the end of the trip, the sun peeped out again, and we were swarmed by mosquitoes as big as hummingbirds. There are reasons hardly anyone lives up there.
The wilderness is central to the Canadian identity. But very few Canadians spend much time in it. That makes it even easier to romanticize. In reality, we are one of the world's most urban nations. Our hinterland is magnificent, hostile and almost entirely uninhabited. Even though we've put loons and lakes on our money, hardly anyone lives near loons and lakes, or even sees them. Maybe we should have Timbits on our money, instead.
Canadians like the idea of the wilderness a lot more than the thing itself. Ninety per cent of the people who take vacations in the Rockies never venture more than an hour away on foot from the parking lot. After two or three hours on foot, you'll have the trail to yourself; after four or five hours, you'll have entire lakes and mountains to yourself. All you have to do is hump a lot of stuff on your back, give up indoor plumbing, and get blisters.
The trouble with the wilderness is that you can't experience the awesome beauty of it without some measure of inconvenience, effort and discomfort. Most people prefer comfort. Take Muskoka, a once-idyllic place of musty summer cottages and rustic plumbing. Today, the shoreline is crowded with timbered mansions decked out in faux rustic style and every conceivable mod con. People spend three hours in heavy traffic to get there from the city. Only millionaires can afford to go there, and the haunting call of the loon is drowned out by the roar of giant smelly engines.
Fortunately, transcendent places still exist in Canada. You don't even need survival skills to experience them. You can rent survival skills. That's how I got down the Nahanni and kayaked the Queen Charlotte Islands without drowning. I've seen the Northern Lights and mountain goats and elk and bears, usually with plenty of help from enthusiastic young people who do all the heavy lifting. I'm aware that experiencing the splendours of the wilderness is a privilege largely reserved for indigenous peoples and well-heeled Anglo-Saxons who grew up reading Pierre Berton.
Will future generations of Canadians continue to believe that the wilderness is central to our identity? I'm not sure. Will it ever even occur to the kids of newcomers from Pakistan or China to have sex in a canoe? I have no idea. What I can tell you is that, in the interest of research, I tried it once myself. Like most wilderness experiences, it involved a fair degree of inconvenience, effort and discomfort. But I didn't mind. At last I knew I was Canadian.
More recent pieces from Margaret Wente
Enviro-romanticism is hurting Africa Friday, Jul. 17, 2009 04:58PM EDT
My friends would be horrified to learn their convictions are keeping children hungry
Someone will have to pay for a two-tier job system Wednesday, Jul. 15, 2009 06:49PM EDT
The compensation gap between the public and private sectors is growing ever wider
In Sonia v. Sarah, GOP is doomed Monday, Jul. 13, 2009 06:53PM EDT
The Bronx judge, the Alaska pin-up girl and the Republican Party
Organic tastes good, but better for us? No Friday, Jul. 10, 2009 06:51PM EDT
If you want to heal the land, it helps to be well-heeled. Let's just rethink what we eat
Freak or hero, it's all showbiz Wednesday, Jul. 08, 2009 06:06PM EDT
The massive public grief over Michael Jackson is no surprise
Health care diagnosis: sick, sick, sick Monday, Jul. 06, 2009 06:47PM EDT
The problem in a nutshell is that North Americans don't understand the true costs of health care
Is your sanity at stake? Friday, Jul. 03, 2009 06:55PM EDT
If you haven't been diagnosed with a mental disorder, there must be something wrong with you
Tim Hudak: Drop the Harris bit Thursday, Jul. 02, 2009 12:00AM EDT
Tim Hudak: Drop the Harris bit Tuesday, Jun. 30, 2009 06:27PM EDT
The new leader of Ontario's Progressive Conservative Party thinks a dose of Castor oil is still necessary
Bernie Madoff and the cruel law of averages Monday, Jun. 29, 2009 07:27PM EDT
Many of his clients should have known he was too good to be true
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