CanadaUS

=CANADA, EH?= =In Bed with an Elephant:= =Canada and the U.S. Discussion Interest Group=

**The group is discontinued.**
This interest group offers our members opportunities to learn more about our neighbour to the north and to explore issues of Canadian-American relations.

For the title we look back to the late Pierre Elliott Trudeau (Canadian Prime Minister, 1968-79), who once said that being a neighbour of the United States was rather like sharing a bed with an elephant. Even its twitches have repercussions for its bedmate. While Canadians and Americans often seem very similar, there are significant and sometimes very subtle differences. Canada is officially a bilingual country. Canadians define rights differently than Americans, and the government provides universal coverage for medically necessary health care services. Here's how one Canadian observer put it, “English American culture seems influenced more by urban black culture and by Latin American culture than we are — our major influences are Quebecois, Chinese, and Indian. There has also been an emphasis on restitution to native Canadians, and on celebrating more elements of their culture and strengthening it. We are obsessed with hockey, and every Canadian, however urban, thinks that his true self is paddling a canoe on some northern lake. The truth, however, is that Canadians have never agreed on what exactly the Canadian identity is, which is why we're so obsessed with stating that, whatever we are, we aren't Americans.”

This is an interest group, not a course, and sessions will offer ample opportunities for discussion that is both thought-provoking and fun. Meeting times TBA. Meets for two hours on five or six evenings during January through March, 2011, for both enlightenment and humor.

Meeting Schedule: Wed. 1/12, 1/26, 2/9, 2/23, 3/9, 3/23, 7 – 9 p.m. Robert Franson’s house, 216 National St., S.C.

Group Leaders
Robert M. Stamp (stamp@ucalgary.ca) is a Canadian historian (MA Toronto; PhD Western Ontario) who has taught in history, Canadian studies, and education programs, and has written widely in educational, social, transportation, and community history. He is a Professor Emeritus of the University of Calgary, and former Associate Dean (Research) of its Faculty of Education.

Robert Franson is an Associate Professor of Law Emeritus of the University of British Columbia, where he taught for 25 years. His subjects included Administrative Law, Canadian Constitutional Law, Environmental Law, and Computers and the Law.

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