An honourable love of country is a fine thing. But there was nothing noble about the supposed patriotism of smug, morally superior Canadians complaining about a Christian concert in Halifax tomorrow. Spurred on by sympathetic CBC attention, they were pouting that American religious leader Sean Feucht has “un-Canadian values” and shouldn’t be allowed on a Parks Canada site.
And, 'Elbows Up!' anyway.
Feucht’s concert is the first stop on his Canada Shall Be Saved tour. One might, of course, think it a tad presumptuous for an American to look north and decide he must save our poor, lost Canadian souls. (Then again, I’m not so sure he’s wrong — see below.)
But if people want to attend that kind of concert, that’s their choice. Canada is still supposed to be a free country. Our dispute is with the American government, not with American evangelists.
So what about Canadians who do share Feucht’s beliefs?
The CBC frames the issue by quoting Halifax Liberal MP Shannon Miedema. She says that while she supports free speech, Feucht’s published opinions are “incompatible with the core beliefs and principles of Parks Canada.”
Translation: Ms. Miedema supports approved speech — not free speech.
But hang on. What’s this got to do with Parks Canada, anyway? When did it become the arbiter of public virtue? Were Parks Canada’s core values independently conceived in a unique and heavenly mind-meld?
Of course not. Its “values” are whatever the Liberal Party says they are on any given day. This is not exactly an arm’s-length relationship. Thus, Ms. Miedema unwittingly reminds us that Parks Canada is just one more federal department repurposed to reshape how Canadians think about our history, values, and justice system.
And, what’s Feucht got to do with all that?
According to my friend and colleague Chris Oldcorn: “Residents say Feucht’s outspoken opposition to abortion rights, 2SLGBTQ+ equality, and critical race theory — as well as his ties to the Make America Great Again movement — clash with Parks Canada’s pledge to create safe, inclusive spaces.”
So far, I like him. But seriously, this is about the Liberal Party’s vision of the “good Canadian.” Consider:
Opposed to abortion? You can’t run for the Liberal Party unless you affirm a woman’s right to choose—in writing.
Question sexual identity? Trudeau declared, “If a man says he’s a woman, he’s a woman.”
Skeptical of critical race theory? Trudeau took a knee in theatrical solidarity with the now-discredited Black Lives Matter movement.
Thing is, it’s not just the wandering Christian troubador Feucht who questions these ideas. So do millions of Canadians — some of them Liberal voters. (All Liberals are not woke.)
What does Parks Canada offer those Canadians? Not the same thing at all. It’s been deputized to help the Liberals help us see what a terrible country Canada was and is — and how, with their guidance, we can be redeemed.
Yes, “brainwashing” is a strong word.
But not too strong.
Consider this report from my friend and erstwhile colleague Jen Hodgson: “Canada’s Privy Council Office (PCO) has a behavioural science unit established under Justin Trudeau that quietly shapes public policy and influences compliance through psychological experiments and data modelling.”
Say what? A government behaviour unit? Who voted for that?
Well, Liberals — but this wasn’t in the campaign literature. The idea that a government would secretly use behavioural science to improve the people — without their consent or a mandate — is appalling.
As someone who once worked in government, I can confirm: this is a Liberal invention. The Harper government never presumed to make such judgments. Canadian conservatives, for all their political machinery, have always understood that their job is to represent the people — not reshape them. During elections, they try to persuade, as Mulroney did in 1988 with free trade. That’s democracy. But they never presumed to “improve” Canadians.
Today’s Liberals, by contrast, seem to think many of us just aren’t good enough.
And it’s not just Parks Canada and the Privy Council Office. Other departments have been drafted too:
Heritage Canada hands out money to activists paid to find “hate,” which conveniently always turns up where the government hopes it will — and not where it is politically inconvenient.
Justice Canada is being retooled so that the law doesn’t apply equally. Under Gladue principles, judges must consider systemic harms to indigenous offenders, a provision intended to produce unequal outcomes in some judicial decisions. Meanwhile, as John Carpay notes, federal positions on sexual identity now pass through the courts to contradict the laws passed by elected governments.
The CRTC has become the government’s cat’s paw for controlling online activity. Online dissent is unwelcome and the goal is to make it harder.
Together then, Parks Canada, Heritage Canada, Justice Canada, the CRTC and now the Privy Council Office form a widespread government effort to tell Canadians what to think — and who, and what opinions — are beyond the pale.
That includes visitors like Sean Feucht.
I doubt Mark Carney would repeat Trudeau’s infamous slurs about “misogynist, racist, anti-science extremists.” He seems less self-indulgent —and smarter.
But Trudeau’s propaganda ministry rolls on. As Ms. Hodgson writes, “The Impact and Innovation Unit (IIU), modelled after a UK program and WHO tools, has long promoted behaviour change using psychology, economics and social science. It became most visible during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
And yes, didn't that pandemic just show Canadians how we were expected to behave.
Maybe that’s where Feucht’s real offence lies. As the CBC reports, he also criticized how governments handled COVID… And if 'we're all in this together,' that would be... unpatriotic.
How easily are our finer sentiments twisted and used against us. Or as the learned Dr. Johnson had it, "Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel.’