John Ibbotson's Provocative New Book

If you want a provocative view of the diverging directions in which Canada and the U.S. are headed, you can't do much better than John Ibbotson's just released "political pamphlet" entitled Open & Shut: Why America has Barack Obama and Canada has Stephen Harper.

The premise of this tract is that following the failed presidency of George Bush, Canadians have become even more complacent about their superiority vis-a-vis the United States just at a time when our own institutions are in precipitous decline. It is a timely argument. Rather than review the entire book, however, I want to focus on the last section, where, Ibbotson argues, we have much to learn from our southern neighbors.

The first is cities. As Ibbotson notes, our perception of American cities is often one of post-apolalyptic chaos and advanced decay. And certainly this is true of some: Detroit and Buffalo spring to mind. But this fails to take two things into account. One, there has been an unprecedented reaissance in many large cities in the U.S.. New York, Boston, Denver, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are but a few of the many that have sharply reduced crime, rebuilt infrastructure and improved cityscapes in ways that have brought the affluent back downtown.
Two, Canada's cities have at the same time endured a prolonged decline. My own observation from travelling to some of this American cities and living in Toronto is that our self-congratulation is getting pretty stale.

Ibbotson's second example is education. Here, he notes, Canada enjoys a large lead. Our education system is ranked among the best in the world while the American languishes with such stellar performers as Croatia and Poland. Yet, Ibbotson suggests, we are in a place similar to where we were with cities a generation ago. The advantage is ours, but the direction favors the Americans.&

The U.S. has, beginning with the Clinton administration, embarked on a great experiment in education, creating charter schools, encouraging bright young college graduates to teach for a few years before embarking on more lucrative careers and generously rewarding accomplished teachers. The results, Ibbotson correctly notes, speak for themselves. Once again, we are resting on our laurels -- the hares in this race -- while the U.S. toroise catches up and possibly overtakes us.

The book is not an argument for U.S. superiority; it is one against Canadian complacency. It is time, Ibbotson notes, for Canadians to talk about these issues in a serious and informed way, rather than relying on tired and self-defeating comparisons with an America that in many ways no longer exists. To that end, he has set up a website at the Globe & Mail. I would encourage readers to visit it.