By Stephen Bradley

Serving under Lester Pearson, Pierre Trudeau saw firsthand the threat the US poses to our sovereignty. As PM he took steps to control our investment and energy policies, and promoted the "third option" foreign policy, seeking closer links with Europe. Metric conversion laid the foundation.

In 1988, 56 percent of Canadian voters rejected the idea of closer ties with the US. But under our undemocratic first-past-the-post system, Mulroney won a majority of seats and launched us into a poorly negotiated and one-sided "Free Trade Agreement." As economic links tighten, our leaders are increasingly fearful of deviating from US policy. MMT (the neural inhibitor fuel additive) highlighted the corporate veto on our protective legislation. Concern has grown over US policies such as first strike with atomic weapons, violations of the Geneva Conventions and the use of force to impose its will on other countries.

Trudeau warned of the dangers of being "a mouse in bed with an elephant." Now the elephant is rolling over hard and the mouse had better think fast.

The European Union shows that globalisation can uphold human values. Respect for human rights is a requirement for admission to the EU, and Canada would be required to deal with issues such as Aboriginal Title and homelessness. In December 2002, Quebec passed Bill 112, An Act to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion, modeled on European legislation. Reason tells us that sharing the wealth, respecting the fundamental human rights of all persons, including the right to clean air and water, and adequate safe food, clothing and shelter, is the only road to peace and security.

The dying empire of oil threatens to engulf us in its convulsions. The next strategic resource will be water, and Canada is the prize. History suggests that the US will rule us by economic force if we remain vulnerable, or by military force, if necessary.

As part of the EU we would be stronger militarily with the US and superior economically. We would be their largest trading partner, and they would have to negotiate with all of us together. We can leave NAFTA with 6 months notice, but can safely do so only as part of the new EU (we could call it the "Earth Union").

When I see the gut reaction of Canadians to the idea, their eagerness to sign the petition, I forsee, sweeping across Canada and Europe, a rage like Beatlemania or Trudeaumania. But the hero is no superstar. It is we, the people, who control our own future.

Someday soon I want to hear the Prime Minister of Canada utter these words as Canada leaves NAFTA and joins the EU: "We celebrate tonight the creation of a new superpower and the end of the one-superpower world. A window of hope in a time of great peril. Our strength protects a space where human intelligence and compassion can work effectively toward healing the traumas of generations of abuse of each other and our planet. We say, ‘Enough! No More!’, to the sabotage of this urgent work by vested interests within our own nations or anywhere in the world. Long live the earth union and long live the earth!"

Please sign the petition to join the EU

Stephen Bradley is a marine navigator and freelance journalist living on Vancouver Island.
valjean@shaw.ca.





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