My background: As an educator I mostly kept my political views private/non-partisan, and would often share the importance of voting in a democracy. I say mostly because if I saw something egregious, I have felt obligated to speak up.

I’m retired now and feel like it’s time to share more about me and my personal perspective.

I am a left of center centrist. I have never voted Conservative. I have voted Liberal, but before Mark Carney, every time I voted Liberal it was a strategic vote to ensure the Conservative in our constituency did not get in. Mark Carney as leader of the Liberal party was the first time I voted Liberal, by choice, not as a strategic vote. (For my American friends, we don’t vote for our Prime Minister unless we live in his/her political riding.)

Also note: Carney is not liberal. If you look at his political strategies and approach he is conservative, and the most conservative politician I’ve ever supported. As a centrist, it was bound to happen at some time, but I’m happy to see a conservative ruler like him in power.

The world today: The American empire is falling. For my entire life I have seen the President of the United States as the ruler of the free/Western world. He has been a representative of what it means to live in a democracy with the promise of liberty, the opportunity for equality, and the potential for upward mobility… In a free world. This might never have been true, it might only ever have been a facade, but it is glaringly not the case today. You cannot be a Superpower when you punish your allies, and spew propaganda and lies, while stifling the once free media. You can note divide your population in hard times when unity is needed.

Meanwhile in Canada: With the exception of some Alberta conservatives, who have been influenced by American politics (and propaganda), Canada has never been more united. Make no mistake, times are going to get tough after the failure of US trade talks, and painful tariffs are imposed, but real Canadians understand that a trade deal can not include allowing foreign control over our sovereignty. So people of every political party and stance have united in agreement with Carney walking away from the negotiations.

The new leader: I did not think of this myself, I’ve heard it framed a few different ways in the last couple days… Mark Carney is now the leader of the free/Western world. He took his first step down this path when he spoke at Davos. I shared back then,

“Prime Minister Mark Carney’s speechat The World Economic Summit in Davos was a call to action, an invite for a band of brothers to take action.”

His idea of the ‘middle powers’ uniting to carve a future out that benefited everyone was the first step. But until Canada stepped away from the trade negotiations this weekend, no middle power truly defied the unrealistic demands of the US. Now Mark Carney and Canada has shown that it is possible to stand up to the bully. And before doing so Carney not only set up some significant bilateral trade agreements with other middle powers, he has also paved the way to develop far more agreements.

Make no mistake, if you want to know who is ensuring the continuation of the values of a free/Western world, look no further than Mark Carney.

All that said: I’d still love to see a workable agreement between Canada and the US. The world is a better place if the US is part of the agreements going forward. And this would benefit both countries greatly. I believe the USA is a country in crisis… and I would like nothing better than to see the people of America, especially the ones most in need, get more support. This won’t happen with an unreliable leader who can’t be trusted to keep agreements, and who egregiously alters the truth to meet his delusional world view… while calling every other perspective ‘fake news’.

The way forward: Despite calling Mark Carney ‘the leader of the free/Western world’, the way forward now is not for him to wield power, but to wield influence. Other countries must now stand up against US bullying behaviour, and show a united front of leadership through open alliances. Canada has led the way. The question now is if other countries will follow?