Curious again.
The U.S. folks on IDW always frame conversations around our experience. For the Canadian and UK members, are your countries similar enough that it doesn't change the conversations, or how do you think your countries' unique properties get lost in the discussion? What about the other countries represented?
Can we get a demographic breakdown of membership?
I try to be sensitive to the countries that are like the US but not exactly like the US
What does strike me is that an Aussie, a Brit and a Canadian can all have pretty much the same opinions as little ol' me
Being from the East coast of Canada, in an officially bilingual province, we are use to three cultures living in the same place not trying to kill each other...most times. Personally I am fascinated with this concept of an American culture..or Being American...there are 50 states and 350 million people all supposedly allowed to think for themselves and live free, talk free....but only if it falls in a very narrow definition of what is American...we are mutts.....
Welcome to IDW! I don't think I agree that all of the other stuff is suppressed with a national identity. To me, it's 1) national identity + all of the other stuff. You're still going have a culture of origin, regional cultures, vocation, religion, education, asian people, black people, hispanics, white people--all of the races and ethnicities, art--I mean, you name it. We are all of those things AND we're all Americans, ideally. Are you suggesting Canada doesn't have a national identity or a national pride? Did it use to?
we have a loose sense of identity, but we accept multiculturalism...and for the most part don't insist immigrants or newcomers conform to some notion of what a Canadian is..a Maritimer is as different from someone from Alberta as someone from Quebec is from a Newfoundlander....we have some vague notion we are stronger together that separate...but somehow delight in not being an American...
@RobertBoucher1, okay, let me ask it this way. Do y'all fly Mexican flags? El Salvadorian flags? House sharia law as sovereign pockets within your Canadian identity? Do you have members in Government who want to dismantle Canada? Short trip from multiculturalism to intersectionality.
I think one of the fascinating things about the online discussion of the Culture Wars is how easily I can relate to what is happening in other countries, and not just the English-speaking ones. It is clear we are all fighting the same fight. I've learned a great deal about local issues in other places (eg Tommy Robinson), and I do care how they resolve. Similarly I am amazed at how many people around the world know about Canadian issues, such as Bill C-16, and genuinely care about it.
I'm not really a trans-national guy, but I have to say I feel a great affinity with my peers around the world fighting this fight.
I'm from the east coast of the US. This is a great observation!!. My feeling is with the UK and Canada that we are close enough in culture and shared history that it won't make much difference, but I hope this post gets some response from other parts of the globe