Don’t give up on Canada; go all in!

It’s always darkest before the dawn

By Spencer Fernando

Canada is at a low point.

We face the possibility of economically devastating tariffs from the U.S.

Parliament is prorogued.

The Prime Minister put the interests of his political party above the interests of the country at a moment of maximum national vulnerability.

We are effectively leaderless at the federal level.

We are falling behind economically.

Our standard of living is dropping.

Crime is up.

Our sense of national identity is in flux.

A future that once seemed full of promise now seems destined to be nothing more than economic pain, division, and decline.

Unsurprisingly, many are losing faith in Canada, and some are giving up.

But that would be a mistake.

While the challenges we face are real, countries have made it through far worse.

Imagine telling someone in late 1939 – after Poland had been invaded by Germany and the Soviet Union – that despite spending nearly 50 years as an occupied nation, Poland in 2025 would be a powerful, confident, free, and increasingly prosperous nation.

It would have seemed absurd.

It would have seemed impossible.

There wasn’t even an independent Poland in late 1939. Two of the most horrendous regimes on Earth had taken over and split the country. Even after the war, Poland spent four decades controlled by the Soviet Union.

Yet, Poland survived.

And now, Poland thrives.

Compared to what Poland experienced, and compared to what many other countries have experienced throughout history, our problems here in Canada are by no means insurmountable.

This isn’t to downplay the serious problems we face, nor is this meant to dismiss the real pain many Canadians are going through.

Those challenges, and that pain, are real.

But we can overcome them.

Remember, Canada remains one of – if not the most – blessed nations on Earth.

Our ancestors fought and died to defend our freedom. They toiled to tame a harsh and unforgiving land. They developed our infrastructure and resources. They came from abroad to seek freedom and prosperity. They built one of the most prosperous and free nations in human history.

Why would we let a decade of poor federal governance demoralize us into throwing all of that away?

Why would we give up on Canada now?

Why would we discard everything our ancestors built?

Why would we surrender to doubt and weakness and just give up on our country?

After all, we voted ourselves into this mess, which means we can vote our way out of it (and we will soon have that chance).

Take a moment and consider the following:

As difficult as things may look right now, we have everything we need to reverse Canada’s decline.

We still have our resources.

We still have our land.

We still have our values.

We still have our people.

We lack for nothing.

In fact, Canada’s problems have been largely caused by our failure to make the most of our abundant resources and our failure to unleash the potential of our population.

But that can change, and it can change fast.

It’s always darkest before the dawn

Oftentimes, someone must hit rock bottom before they are fully spurred into action.

And that’s where we are today.

For decades, our country lived in the naïve delusion that we could always rely on others for our prosperity and our defence. We assumed that everyone had good intentions, without recognizing the need to defend ourselves and foster resilience.

We were wrong, and this has left us feeling vulnerable and adrift.

But this represents a moment of tremendous opportunity for our nation.

We can finally step up and act like a serious country.

We can become a country that fully unleashes our natural resources, a country that is able to defend itself and support our allies, a country that is both welcoming of others and unafraid to promote the values that made us one of the freest nations on Earth, and a country that dreams big dreams rather than settling for ‘good enough.’

A future of nearly unimaginable prosperity can be ours. 

It’s there for the taking.

There isn’t another nation on this entire planet that has as much potential as Canada.

And now, it’s time to shake off our timidity.

It’s time to stop looking to others for permission to be a powerful nation.

It’s time to stop holding ourselves back.

And it’s time to stop thinking small.

Instead of giving up on Canada, we need to go all in on Canada.

It’s on each and every one of us – you, me, everyone in this country – to transform this temporary moment of darkness and decline into a new long-lasting era of Canadian prosperity and strength that exceeds anything we can imagine.

*****

This column was originally published for the National Citizen’s Coalition.

Spencer Fernando is one of the most popular and prolific political voices in Canada. He is a writer and campaign fellow for the National Citizens Coalition. Join the mailing list to receive his exclusive weekly columns in your inbox.

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