A Real Canadian? An Epiphany

The Swedish Residence has
a better view than Sparks St.

I was hanging out on Sparks Street yesterday with a former government official, and I had an epiphany.  No, it was not about how underwhelming Sparks Street is.  It was about the affinity Canada and I have for each other.  

I have long had a chronic case of FOMO: fear of missing out.  I attribute it to being the youngest of four kids.  I distinctly remember only hearing about how wonderful the first few years of Saturday Night Live were, but not being able to stay up late enough to watch for myself.  Had I know that years later I would be able to consume heaps of old SNL via videotapes and repeats, maybe I wouldn't feel so left out?

Canada, similarly, has a deep and abiding case of FOMO. Hey, folks, there's a small club of folks buying nuclear subs, but you can't join since you have no plans!  Oh noes, no C in AUKUS, the Australia/UK/US group of advanced weapons tech sharing.  Yeah, it may be more than subs, but it is mostly about subs.  In talking to my friend yesterday, we talked a bit about AUKUS, that the FOMO was mostly coming from outside of government among the pols and the pundits.  It was not the first time  I sensed Canada's FOMO panic about various things.

And I have internalized it.  When folks talk about transatlantic relations, emphasizing US-Europe in NATO-adjacent stuff, I am quick to remind folks that Canada is in NATO, too.  

Pre-CANSEC reception at
Swedish residence

So, Canada and I both identify with Rudolph, who was left out of various reindeer games.  Which leaves us both trying to get into various collaborations even if they don't always make sense.  For Canada, that is AUKUS.  For me, it could be CANSEC.  I am spending tomorrow at the annual tradeshow of the Canadian defence industry.  Yes, I will be hanging out with arms dealers.  Ok, not the exotic ones, but those carrying business cards bearing BAE, Saab, General Dynamics, Lockheed, whatever (I lead with the Swedes since I was at a nice reception last night that was the pre-CANSEC party hosted by the Swedish embassy).  Will I be in the market for some fancy new artillery?  Anti-aircraft weapons?  A helicopter?  No, of course not.  I will be in the room, which is all I need.  I have seen pics and tweets in previous years and felt left out.

I do think I will get some benefit from being inside the room besides assuaging my FOMO--meeting both government and industry folks and hearing them complain about each other.  Last night, one rep from a company I will not name suggested that all of the requirements that are piled onto a defence contract by the government of Canada almost make it not worthwhile to do business here.  He was speaking of the offsets--that each contract needs to be way more expensive because they have to pay for jobs in Canada.  Which reminded me of my fave campaign graphic--the cover of the Liberal Defence Platform of 2015: 

Notice that the promise eight years ago was not to buy ships to defend Canada but to create jobs by investing in the Navy--which nicely omits .... ships.  Just spending money on jobs where shipbuilding might be happening but ships actually being finished ... not so much.  

I go to these things because I never know will the networking will lead.  That I have met a lot of folks over the years, and I was never very strategic about who I needed to meet--but that enough of those connections paid off in unexpected ways.  For example, there was a dinner where I sat next to a pollster which lead to inviting that pollster's firm to join the CDSN, which happened to mean that the Chancellor of Carleton at that moment was a key participant in a CDSN organiational meeting since Nik Nanos of the Nanos survey firm was also heading Carleton's Board of Governors.  Completely unintentional on my part, but super handy ultimately.  

So, yeah, the times I have been in the room have been sufficiently beneficial that my FOMO has not been sated--that I might miss something if I am left out.  And thus I understand why Canadian punditry and media get into conniptions about being left out of AUKUS and other groups even when Canada is not going to buy any subs anytime soon.  So, the irony is that I fit really well in Canada, that I don't feel left out, because I always fear being left out.