Secretly Canadian (Rochester Writers)

One of the great things about living in Rochester is that it gets you in touch with your inner Canadian. You know that person - the reasonable one who lives in a quiet cul-de-sac of your psyche, right down the street from your flaming ball of American rage.

Your inner Canadian always has a moderate solution to thorny problems. Let's say an obnoxious, French-speaking minority wants to secede from the Union. What's your solution? If you're thinking "Start a war and kill half of the adult male population from 18-24", that's your ball of rage talking. "Change every sign in the country, print everything in two languages, and go on with life" -- now that's your Canadian at work.

Not only is your inner Canadian moderate, she or he is also calm and reasonable. You won't hear a peep from your Canadian unless the Leafs win the cup. Also, Canadians are generally peaceful: they didn't participate in Vietnam, and they aren't in Iraq today.

Unfortunately, however, your Canadian has a bit of an inferiority complex. Hard to avoid that when the rest of the world treats you like the northernmost part of another country.

I got a chance to trot out my inner Canadian today, when I saw that a number of major Canadian recording artists had started the Canadian Music Creators Coalition. What a simple, yet compelling document.

First, there's the moderation. The coalition has picked three relatively non-controversial statements that most Canadians can agree upon. And they've kept it brief. Most single-issue advocates are so bent on proving their point that they spill gallons of ink justifying their position. Not so for our Canadians.

Then, there's the calm. Watch Steven Page's interview. He's as worked up as he needs to be: namely, not very. Even though this is an issue that's important to him, he doesn't act like the sky will fall if something isn't done. I challenge you to find a U.S. celebrity who can advocate an issue with as little heavy breathing and bloviation as this guy.

Finally, there's the proud assertion that the Canadian government should support Canadians. That's a bit of the inferiority complex, but they have a point.

H.L. Mencken once said that Canadians are the only people who take moderation to an extreme. So, perhaps it isn't always wise to always heed the counsel of your inner Canadian. But sometimes I think that little guy is on to something.