Abstract

McDonald's thesis is that the chief villain in the unfolding tragedy of Canada is Pierre Elliott Trudeau and, to a lesser extent, his predecessor Lester B. Pearson. Goldwin Smith's well-known late-19th century comment that Canada was “rich by nature, but poor by policy” seems to hold true today. The secondlargest country in the world, rich in resources, Canada has been virtually bankrupted by government profligacy. Canada has been called “the impossible country,” and many have considered it “an impossible country to govern.” The accumulated national debt is now reaching 600 billion in Canadian dollars (one Canadian dollar equals about $.72 US), which per capita is six times that of the US.