Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Our own eccentrics

In the interest of full disclosure to our friends in the homeland south of us, we have also had our share of weird and wonderful leaders. Our first Prime Minister, John A. McDonald, (the equivalent I suppose of your Washington) was a binge drinker. No holier than thou, I cannot tell a lie type of guy, but a larger than life personage who could drink like a fish and still function. He was once quoted as having said to D'Arcy McGee (another heavy drinker, today there is a great Irish pub named after him in Ottawa) that there was only room for one drunk in the cabinet so he (D'Arcy) must reform...

Then we had William Lyon McKenzie-King. This was the prime minister who would go for a walk on his estate and discuss the nation's business with his dog and his mother. Now I know that this doesn't seem all that strange, but you have to realize that they had both been dead for many years. His hobby was building ruins. Some men build houses, mansions even castles. He deliberately built ruins. No not let a building fall into ruins, he built new ruins. He would scour Ottawa for buildings being torn down so that he could use bits and pieces in his ruins.

We also had our philosopher prince, Pierre Eliot Trudeau. Canadians either loved him or hated him. He was charismatic, flamboyant and down right arrogant. He would wear sandals to parliament and once did a pirouette behind Queen Elizabeth's back at an official function. He once told the opposition to, as the journalists put it, "fuddle duddle" I'll let you guess what he really said. He is probably the only thing that Québec Separatists and Western Conservatives can agree on... they both hate the man. Like him or hate him, he certainly left nobody indifferent.

In the last couple of years we have had Jean Chrétien. He was perfectly bilingual. Not strange you say? It has been said that Jean Chrétien was the only Prime Minister to speak both of Canada's official languages poorly at the same time. He also once tackled a demonstrator who got too close and scared the hell out of his body guards. But to give the devil his due, he did tell Dubya to go somewhere when he refused to be drawn into the debacle that is Irak and the wily old fox served 3 terms as Prime Minster (1993-2003) and had one of the highest popularity ratings in recent history despite the scandals.

It is somewhat ironic that Canadians, who have a reputation as being rather staid and middle of the road, elected and then re-elected these men to the highest office in Canada. McDonald served for 19 years as Prime Minister, McKenzie King for 22 years, Trudeau for 15 years, and Chrétien for 10 years. Hmm I wonder what that really says about us?

6 comments:

Jazz said...

I think Chrétien pretty much told Dubbya to "fuddle duddle" simply because he was leaving office. I'm not at all sure he would have told Dubbya to take a flying fuck (pardon my french) had he been staying in office.

But then again, maybe he would have.

Ian Lidster said...

Not just conservative westerners detest PET and the very air he used to breathe. Conservatives, socialists and even some sensible Liberals (and I believe there are a few) are united in their contempt for the arrogant prick.

As for Jean Chretien. As a lowly scribe I once stood next to him at a urinal when he was justice minister (I'd just interviewed him) and we had a delightful off the record chat while we both perused our respective chunks of ceiling.

Tai said...

We Canadians just look conservative and friendly.
Secretly we seethe and drink too much and thus we elect a man to be a public display of our inner alcoholic rager.
Great post!

Anonymous said...

It says you cherish your eccentrics?

I've made the blog move.

Evil Spock said...

Its that maple syrup/moose antler concoction you Canucks drink.

Ian Lidster said...

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