In Search Of Canadian Political Culture

What do we really mean by phrases such as "western Canadian political culture," "the centrist political culture of Ontario," "Red Toryism in the Maritimes," or "Prairie socialism"? What historical, geographical, and sociological factors came into play as these cultures were forged? In this book, Nelson Wiseman addresses many such questions, offering new ways of conceiving Canadian political culture. The most thorough review of the national political ethos written in a generation, In Search of Canadian Political Culture offers a bottom-up, regional analysis that challenges how we think and write about Canada.

This timely revision of one of the classic books in Canadian political studies, originally published in 1979, examines two questions: Will the Canadian federal system fall apart little more than a century after Confederation? Or can its problems of disunity be solved by good intentions with skillful diplomacy? In light of the swelling militancy in Quebec, and key events of the 1980s, Bell has updated his acclaimed reading of Canada's unique political culture by examining some of the important issues involved, including immigration, multiculturalism, the "two nations" concept, the growing sense of independence of Canada's western provinces, and the incursion of American industry and culture into Canada.

Reflect on this: You work hard; maybe you work two jobs. You do your best to pay the mortgage or the rent, not to mention other bills. You could use a few extra bucks for your kids' sports or education. In short—you're responsible. Shouldn't the people in charge of governments and taxes be the same? Instead, a separatist sympathizer is chosen as Governor-General, political appointments expect entitlements, and too many politicians elected in one party opportunistically jump ship to another. The same people pass laws to prevent citizens from speaking up—at election time! While this happens, the same political-bureaucratic-judicial axis can't get tough on crime. A Nation of Serfs?: How Canada's Political culture Corrupts Canadian Values is a tart, opinionated call for Canadians to re-think their politics, their dependencies, and the mistaken belief that nothing ever changes. But it can. It starts with truth-telling. It starts with remembering our history. It starts with this book. "Nothing like this book has ever appeared in Canada. My favourite chapter is the one devoted to exploring some of Canada's true roots as a principles of limited government as any in the world." —Terence Corcoran, Editorial Page Editor, The Financial Post "This book is a must-read. Mark Milke makes the moral case against dependency for its own sake. On the right, the fallacy of government subsidies to corporate Canada is exposed; so too is the culture of apathy, entitlement and opposition to sensible reform, which is relentlessly encouraged by the political left. A Nation of Serfs? will open the eyes of average Canadians; it will hand them the 'ammo' to confront many tax-happy politicians and the rainbow of special-interest groups that cheer them on." —John Williamson. Federal Director, Canadian Taxpayers Federation

"The sixth edition of Canadian Politics offers a comprehensive introduction to Canadian government and politics by a highly respected group of political scientists. For this edition, the editors have organized the book into six parts. Part I examines Canadian citizenship and political identities, while Parts II and III deal with Canadian political institutions, including Aboriginal governments, and contain new chapters on the public service and Quebec. Parts IV and V shift the focus to the political process, discussing issues pertaining to culture and values, parties and elections, media, groups, movements, gender, and diversity. The chapters on Parliament, bureaucracy, political culture, political communications, social movements, and media are new to this edition. Finally, three chapters in the last section of the book analyze components of Canadian politics that have been gaining prominence during the last decade: the effects of globalization, the shifting ground of Canadian-American relations, and the place of Canada in the changing world order. Of the 21 chapters in this edition, 9 are new and the remainder have been thoroughly revised and updated."--pub. desc.

Ajzenstat and Smith challenge the idea of Canada as a country whose liberal individualism, unlike that of the United States, is redeemed by a tradition of government intervention in economic and social life: the so-called "tory touch." This ground-breaking book begins with the now classic article in which the red tory view was formulated. It then presents a new and illuminating picture of Canadian political life, in which liberal individualism confronts not toryism but the participatory tradition of civic republicanism. In the final section the two editors, one a liberal, the other a civic republican, debate the crucial questions dominating Canadian politics today-including Quebec's search for recognition-from the perspective of their shared understanding of Canada's founding.

Canada: The State of the Federation 2000/01 probes beneath the surface to determine if the obvious changes – the fractious federal party system, the "common sense revolution" in government budgeting, the re-birth of the sovereignty movement in Quebec, and the re-assertion of Aboriginal claims – are symptomatic of a shift in Canadian political culture. Arguably, political changes in Canada have been greater in the 1990s than in any other decade since Confederation, but do these changes signify a shift in Canadian political culture? Can we even speak of a Canadian political culture? What are the consequences of these changes for the federation? Are Canadians more or less united? Are federal-provincial relations better or worse? What does the future hold? The authors attempt to answer these questions through analyses of the federal party system, politics in the provinces and regions, and political dynamics in a number of issue areas, including Aboriginal politics, the Charter, multiculturalism, the rural-urban cleavage, and social policy.

Politics on the Canadian prairies are puzzling. The provinces share common roots, but they have nurtured three distinct political cultures -- Alberta is Canada's bastion of conservatism, Saskatchewan its cradle of social democracy, and Manitoba its progressive centre. Jared Wesley explains this paradox by examining the rhetoric employed by dominant parties to renew their provinces' political code -- freedom for Alberta, security for Saskatchewan, and moderation for Manitoba. Although the content of their campaigns differed, leaders from William Aberhart to Tommy Douglas to Gary Doer have employed distinct codes to ensure their parties' success and shape their provinces' political landscapes.