This is generally my view of Canada, and I am fairly certain that other nations are beginning to see Canada that way as well. But lately I have been meeting a lot of people from other provinces who contradict this impression.

I have noticed that people from almost any province feel perfectly natural insulting the Canadian prairies. I know people who have moved here from British Columbia who never get their fill of disparaging the weather in Edmonton, and who constantly reminisce aloud about how beautiful it is in B.C..

Being homesick is fine, but I noticed a general inherently negative view of the prairies. People just naturally long to escape the prairies, as if this region of the world is a prison or a punishment. Celebrated Canadian novelist Mordecai Richler was particularly vitriolic towards Edmonton, saying that you can tell a place is backwards when they have streets that are still called “Trail”.

And yet I have also encountered a large majority of people who feel that denizens of the prairies are friendlier than the average Canadian. When I was in Ottawa and Montreal, people commented on my unguarded country-boy manner. I was just being my regular prairie self. And on the Sunshine Coast in B.C., I only met one person who really wanted to talk to someone they didn’t know.

I recently met a girl from Ottawa. She seemed friendly, and we chatted. When she found out what rock bands I had written my Master of Arts thesis on, she disdainfully told me that those bands are not “real heavy metal” and that “glam rock” and “hair metal” bands are the real metal. I told her I never could find a taste for that music. “Oh, that’s unfortunate for you,” she replied. I tried to keep the conversation alive, but all she could say was that my taste was “unfortunate”. I changed the subject and said that I love autumn because it is so beautiful. She said that Edmonton’s autumn isn’t as pretty as Ottawa’s because there aren’t enough reds.

I was stunned. Now matter how brash or rednecked an Albertan might be, I have never met one that arrogant. I’ve been called fag, freak, hippie, geek, and all sorts of things, but those people are just insecure write-offs. This girl was genuinely either convinced of her superiority or ignorant of how to interact in a social situation.

I know that no matter what one’s political views, there is no point in outright insulting someone in friendly conversation. It’s more useful to learn from someone, even if you disagree with them. At the very least, you can use what you have learned against them.

Sure, I’m ashamed of Alberta’s political leader, and the support he gets from voters. It’s sad to see Albertans cheer on the USA in a fight for “freedom”, then deny their own neighbours equal rights to the privileges of Canadian citizenship.