To me, the whole approach to supposedly recreate a Great Country below the 49th parallel by the new White House holds the distinct possibility that much of the former Greatness could be destroyed.
The U.S. prided itself in being the beacon of democracy in the Western world especially after they entered the Second World War late yet were able to help hugely to defeat Nazi authoritarianism in Europe.
The New Deal economy generated a lot of wealth, much of which went into improving the lives of many people, including the health and welfare of many people in other parts of the world. Now that wealth is being diverted away from showing the world what a wealthy economy can do.
Unfortunately, the U.S. thought they could influence regimes by undermining even democratically elected governments in some countries.
Threats to Canadian sovereignty is no way to become “great” again. What a threat to our democracy!
Many immigrants to the U.S. and Canada over the decades have sought a better life. Many who were escaping persecution and poverty were seeking freedom of religion. Now why would descendants of these immigrants want to deny citizens of their country who are in a similar situation now ( e.g.poverty, lack of civil liberties…) to where they came from?
Shortages of resources (water, minerals, energy) can be an excuse to covet neighbouring countries wealth. Isn’t there a Christian value (rule) that one should not covet the neighbours wife or property?
Then there is the conservation of the life supporting nature that allowed the huge population growth in the world. We as humans have more than achieved sufficient food for our needs (it is distribution that is the problem!) and provided for our physical security with big war machines. These machines have more that enough military might to blow up civilized society many times over. Our insecurities come from societal breakdown and from discontent and poor health: mental and physical.
The housing and opioid crises can be blamed in part for unscrupulous drug use promotion and dependency. Opioids were to be a great treatment for long-term pain. Until, it seems it was so “effective”. Crime can follow such opportunity.
Huge houses have used up a lot of the land available in cities and dense populations have augmented this trend putting people in high rise concrete jungles.
As societies, many Western countries have consumed more than their share of resources and think they need to look elsewhere. It would be better to look at a better system of wealth distribution than prohibited by runaway capitalism. We all know that one per cent of us hold most of the wealth. When is enough enough? Caring for the health, welfare, and security of one’s self and one’s neighbours must be our focus if we want a Great Society.
In the process of “progress” why would we destroy the beauty and natural productivity of the resources around us. We have places that are heavenly here and now. Why would we destroy them and justify it by saying our reward for our “beliefs and bad behaviour” is in the Afterlife heaven.
Surely being heavenly in our behavior while we are here should be its own reward.
