Sunny Ways? It's Up To Us

A lot has changed in the three years since Justin Trudeau’s government came to power, promising to deliver on the “sunny ways” he promoted during the campaign.  A few big things got in the way – a court ruling on Trans Mountain pipeline, struggles with the provinces, including the Doug Ford victory, carbon pricing troubles, Maxime Bernier, and, inevitably, Donald Trump – leaving Trudeau’s re-election chances a year from now in the “unsure” category. The promises of a brighter day now seem almost passéin the turmoil of recent years.But maybe not. Gradually, perhaps inevitably, an increasingly number of citizens in this country, America and Europe are casting a cautious eye on all the chaos fulminating from identity politics, an inflammatory social media, hyper-partisanship, and the use of our present dystopia by forces bent on racism, anti-immigration and an unaccountable populism.  For all the concerns about democracy’s demise, there appears to be a growing willingness among many in these countries to “push back” and attempt to bring democracy back to a level of functionality that assists everyone.Popstar Bono definitely thinks so and he’s visiting the power centres of Europe to make his case. He’s not without considerable credibility, and when he acknowledges the darker side of politics these days people nod in agreement.  But for all his venting on the inequities of democratic life at the moment, he feels the most effective way to counteract the growing gloom is to voice a positive and compelling vision of what democracy can still become if the financial and democratic leaders would fight for it.And, so, Bono threw down the gauntlet last week while on his travels: “Europe needs to go from being seen as a bore, a bureaucracy, a technical project, to being what is – a grand, inspiring idea.”  It’s the kind of aspirational tone that Justin Trudeau used not at all that long ago, but the troubles of democracy in the time since have drowned out that message.We’re not just talking about policy here, or even, to a certain degree, politics.  It’s about perspective and message – not empty catchphrases but rallying points around which citizens can gather and begin to fight back for just societies without tearing them down at the same time. And it forms a means whereby citizens who yet believe in the basic goodness of Canada can still fight for it.But if this has any chance of working, it must link to a more effective kind of political democracy – not the kind of “gotcha” attacks so easy for political parties to levy today, but the kind that extends the franchise of prosperity and accessibility the majority of Canadians are feeling might be eroding in the modern era.Jobs, the environment, equal pay for equal work, the righting of the gender imbalance, effective healthcare and education – these are what all Canadians desire, regardless of their other personal differences.  Underneath it all is the understanding, now growing in significant proportions, that the wealth generated in this country has moved ever-upwards and away from average families and our social infrastructure.  As long as our political leaders voice aspirational promises at the same time as they tolerate the greater inequalities that the concentration of wealth is producing, fewer and fewer people are going to buy in. It’s Fool’s Gold, full of promise but no eventual prosperity.The partnership between capitalism and democracy has proved to be a remarkably fluid and dynamic one. But at some point in the past, the two began working towards separate purposes, with the financial industry squirreling away the wealth while democracy was left with promises but fewer resources.  The mood in most Western nations today is to restore that workable relationship, and for that to happen, the political class must go after those riches that have been sapped out of communities, families and workers.The majority of citizens are not yet in the place where they wish to toss out capitalism or the democratic process, but as an increasing number of them feel outside of economic progress, it will only be a matter of time until other solutions are sought – not merely by extremist groups but average citizens themselves.There are reasons why democracy and capitalism are in the crosshairs of the world’s angst and it will ultimately be up to our political leaders to take on the moneyed class to invest in their own nations.  Fail in that endeavour and all bets are off.  Canadians have experienced decades of free trade and lost their prosperity just as easily as the Americans will lose theirs if Donald Trump keeps knee-capping historic trade deals.  It’s not about trade, but wealth, and jobs, and a clean environment, and a sense of community built around such benefits“Sunny ways” still have a place in our communal vocabulary, not because some leader used the term but because we, as Canadians by nature, still see such an outcome as better than the darkness encroaching from without and within.  Anarchists despise such language, but Canadians in general inhabit its meaning.When Bono said a number of years ago that, “The world needs more Canada,” it wasn’t some pipe-dream, but a challenge that we have a reputation as a nation that has had it together for some time, despite our failures.  It’s up to the politicians from all parties to ensure that the structure keeps being built that will include all Canadians and stave off the decline that will otherwise emerge.