Royal Canadian Air Farce, Or Harper Really Doesn't have the Interests of the Country at Heart

A Nanos poll reported in The Globe and Mail says that Stephen Harper's decision to add the designation "Royal" to the names of Canada's Air Force and Navy would boost the fortunes of the Bloc Québécois and Quebec nationalism. That, of course, is a major reason for the move, although Harper's strategy of targetting parts of the electorate with specific measures surely plays a role here. The Monarchist vote may not be terribly large, but it's another piece of the Conservatives strategy.

And I'm outraged. As I've mentioned before, I'm no friend of the monarchy. I even hesitated a long time before taking out Canadian citizenship because I thought I'd have to swear allegiance to the Queen (in the end it was just to uphold her laws.) This is a country whose roots were both French and English, and that now welcomes people from all over the world. We do not need this kind of silly nod to a past which wasn't all that glorious to begin with.

Bring back the Royal Canadian Air Force? No. But maybe a modern day version of the Royal Canadian Air Farce.