Are Interests Really Value-Free?

The recent summer season witnessed an important development in the post–Cold War history of Canadian democracy. Whereas much of the political theatre in our country over the past two decades has been dominated by the themes of national unity, the state of our healthcare system or resource sharing between the feds and the provinces, international affairs has at best played a supporting role. In fact, the old adage that “all politics is local” seems tailor-made for Canada.

Not so in July and August of 2006. Whether it was the war in Lebanon, Iran’s defiance of the United Nations Security Council, the Harper government’s stance on Hamas and the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, or the Canadian military’s deployment to Afghanistan, the printing presses and airwaves were inundated by things foreign. Many Canadians, taking time away from their barbeques to participate in call-in shows, demonstrated just how hot and bothered they were by these events. More significantly, the...