An open Call to all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians

The following was initially sent as a comment to one of our previous articles by a reader who goes by the name of Gordon. In keeping with the intent of this site to openly discuss our issues, I asked Gordon if he would mind our re-printing the piece on the front page. He graciously agreed so here are his comments in their entirety (with some very minor editing for clarity.)

Thanks Gordon and keep the comments coming.
The Editor

As I see the recovery of the "Fighting Newfoundlander" is an inevitable development in history. Sadly, the events of the past and how things are developing now may hurt as well as help..... but it does not have to be so negative. Let me explain.

We seem to draw a lot of our nationalist sentiment from 1949, i.e., not the final result but from the fact that the debate was so close and so bitter. The victors of the referenda decided to bury the other side's arguments. Even the losing side tried to bury their roots. Yet, whenever there was a problem, it became so easy to take convenient little elements of the the other side.

Joey did that from time to time. Note, for example, his reaction to the IWA strike. "Battlin' Brian" exploited the old alternative brilliantly enough to rule for ten years. Even the other Brian tried to ape the other side from time to time, even if cartoonishly.

The problem is, we generally dismiss the alternative, and we are left with the likes of "larger than life" premiers who talk loudly yet carry no stick. I think we are yearning for leaders with real qualities, the kind that get results. We also have to acknowledge that a large part of who we are is not convincingly Canadian. We cannot really be "Canadian" because being "Canadian" is part of the probem we have yet to deal with.

We all know that Newfoundlanders had little to do with the referenda and that really it was a deal between Britain and Canada. By the way, part of the deal included Canada canceling Britain's war debt. Now, do you think that made the Brits neutral observers? And how "Canadian" does that make us?

The negative side of all this is that we vote for politicians who are aggressive even when they do not have to be. You can really piss off the wrong people when you do that. Having said that, what we need is a Newfoundland and Labrador builder, a nation builder, if you will. He/ She can be a separatist or not. The main thing is to unite us as a nation and push us forward. We have the buttons to do it as a province, although we might have more as a country.

We can get rid of the foreign fishing fleets by negotiating our way out of it..... but only WE Newfoundlanders and Labradorians can initiate the negotiations because, quite frankly, we mean little to Canada.

We should also find a way to get Labrador electricity to the island and from there to St. Pierre and even the Maritimes and perhaps the USA. The main point here is to develop a cohesive province/nation. I think that it will be critical, considering that oil is not a renewable resource.

In the short-term, a trans-Labrador highway is also essential. But let's go further. We should even have a kind of elected senate in Newfoundland and Labrador to better reflect the distinct parts of our province. Having said that, our Lieutenant Governor should be an elected leader rather than some party hack nobody remembers, let alone respects.

As things stand now, we are looking increasingly at selected bits of our history for inspiration. Look at the resurrection of the Pink, White and Green as our flag. Few areas of the world outside the Balkans go back into the past to see where they are today. Mind you, it's a cool flag. I have a big one....er, flag, that is.

We really must unite this province, this is where OUR nationalism is key, or else we will have not only Confederate vs. Separatist, but townie vs. bayman and Newfoundlander vs. Labradorian and there might even be blood spilt. You see, nationalism gets tough sometimes.

First things first. I say as an ardent separatist, let's build this province and then tackle Confederation. I might not live to see a Newfoundland and Labrador passport but I surely hope my newly born son will live to see (and have) one. To do it will take time and thinking outside the box.

Tactics like threatening to blow EU fishing boats out of the water make us look immature. That said, the kind of popular opinion being expressed in this province these days can be useful to a clever leader. It can strengthen his/her resolve and it gives them more "teeth", not to mention more room outside the box in which to walk.

The real nationalists and separatists in today's Newfoundland and Labrador should not ape the kind of cartoon nationalism exhibited by certain post-confederate leaders. Rather, we should look deeper at who we are, as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, and become a real nation at long last.

Don't forget, Labrador was only part of Newfoundland for one year before the Statute of Westminster was thrust upon us (which was really more Britain's independence from its White colonies, rather than the other way around). The Commission of Government was a British-controlled sham designed to make Britain look good at our expense. The 1948 referenda was largely a British attempt to rid itself of a crippling war debt; and Canada is a part of that scam. These events helped form our legacy, but we can rise above all that in a responsible, peaceful, creative and sensible way.

First of all I’d like to ask all responsible, peaceful, creative and sensible nationalists/ separatists to please rise.

See? Now we're getting somewhere.

Mark my words, you ain't seen nothing yet.