Quote:
Originally Posted by MolsonExport
I agree, and I am not fetishizing a larger population for the sake of a larger population, especially since we all know that most of the growth is going to go in the places that are already very crowded. One thing I do lament about our comparatively small population is that we are completely overshadowed by the colossus to the south, whether it comes to our own culture, technology, corporations, and increasingly, politics.
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I wonder if increasing population would even really help in that manner, all other things being equal. Canada of 20-30 million from 1960s-1990s had far more distinctiveness and interest in itself.
In a certain sense, I don't think population unto itself matters. The United States of 200 million in the late 1960s went to the moon. 130 million people later, it just went back to low-Earth orbit from being on the ground. The spirit and outlook of the people within the country are what seems to matter.
Hardly anyone would call small-population Ireland (<5 million) as not distinctive. Even though it shares a history and link with the UK, its population doesn't get lost in gazing towards it for obvious reasons. The Kiwis don't get lost in gazing towards Australia. They seem contented to share bits, but define themselves independently.
I would like us to aspire to the same. Our elite doesn't really share that view though.
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