Good reasons to be proud

“Give me a place to stand,

And a place to grow,

And call this land, Ontario,

A place to stand,

A place to grow,

Ontari-ari-ari-o.”

Anyone who was around in 1967 knew these lyrics and the tune to the song.

Every kid in school heard it, sang it, and knew what is was all about.

It was from a time when we were celebrating the nation's centennial year and the accomplishments of 100 years as a nation. I recall attending a local military salute with my father where the local militia unit fired off a 21-gun salute with artillery to celebrate. We had special assemblies at school, and all in all it was an exciting year.

It was also a time to be proud of the province you called home – the place you grew up in – the place you will remember for the rest of your life.

It was a banner year in the nation's history. There were many public projects started that year and many places still have the word ‘centennial' in their name in recognition of the year of their creation.

However, in the past 10 years, the pride has been replaced with the negative attitude that is promoted by certain groups with agendas and a mainstream media that takes every opportunity to jump on the bandwagon and take up a cause thrown at the public by a minority.

From disparaging the nation's founding fathers, to attacking entire groups for being a certain colour and being told they should feel guilty for it, this small minority takes issue with just about everything that is right with the province and the country.

By and large, most Ontarians and Canadians are quite proud of a nation that was created from next to nothing.

In the span of only a few hundred years – a mere drop in the bucket of human existence – towns and cities grew, until eventually a modern nation of 3.5 million square miles was built.

Other than a few minor skirmishes and unhappy rebellious types – see the Fenian Raids and the pre-confederation Rebellions of 1837-38 – this was accomplished without some kind of bloody revolution.

Looking back at the logistics of the feat – it's an incredible achievement. Some nations still can't dig their way out of the middle ages after a couple of thousand years.

So why are these minority groups complaining? Well, because they can, and it is in their nature to dwell on the negative and point fingers at other people – always OTHER people they think are in the wrong.

Who knows what the real agenda is, but if you're complaining because you grew up in Ontario you should takes a few trips to other places around the world and get your head together.

No, everything did not go perfectly during the building of a nation. Many things can be attributed to growing pains and others to a sign of the times.

The PM's office is now on this kick to apologize to everyone who was dissatisfied.

If people were wronged, they deserve an apology, but not when they, and everyone who knew them, are dead. And certainly don't apologize on behalf of the rest of us who never had anything to do with any wrongdoing.

My ancestors on my father's side were persecuted and even killed in their native Germany for several hundred years, for religious reasons. They finally moved to a special colony in southern Russia were they were left alone, before making the decision to move the entire family to Canada in the 1870s.

According to the current apology logic, German Chancellor Angela Merkel should be apologizing to me for the treatment of my great-grandfather and his family and sending me a healthy cheque to right the wrongs done to people who are long dead and I never knew.

Maybe the MAJORITY of us who like where we were born, take pride in the accomplishments of this province and country, and have no intentions of feeling ‘guilt' for being born a certain way, should start standing up to this current craze of negativity.

Don't let a minority of professional complainers disparage what you and your families and your parents and their parents have accomplished.

Speak up when it occurs and let people know you're proud to part of the fabric of this successful society.