Word: canadianization
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Perhaps Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper was warned to beware of authors bearing gifts. Recently, Canadian writer Yann Martel, who became a household name when his novel Life of Pi won the prestigious Booker Prize in 2002, announced that he intended to send the Prime Minister a book every two weeks. Martel has already sent Harper two, accompanied by letters about each book's literary merits and meanings, but the PM has yet to thank...
...culture," Martel charges. His campaign, intended to encourage Harper's Conservative government to make the arts and arts funding a higher priority, was launched with an essay in the national newspaper The Globe and Mail, has its own website, and has succeeded in attracting considerable media attention. Many Canadians regard government grants to arts institutions and artists as essential for protecting and nurturing Canadian culture in the midst of a constant flood of American influence. "I hope this is sort of a wake-up call to him," Martel told TIME. "If it instills a certain sense of shame because...
...Harper's minority government has been holding on to most of the support it had when elected 15 months ago, but is now taking a lot of heat over its environment policies and the Canadian Forces' role in Afghanistan. And certainly, there's some work ahead to win votes in the artistic community. In April, artists and writers protested cuts to arts funding on Parliament Hill. Shortly after, author Margaret Atwood accused the Tories of being out to "squash the arts into the dust...
...Martel says he's in this thing for the long haul and will send books as long as Harper is in power. "He has to respond at some point. It would be unacceptable if a Canadian citizen wrote to the Prime Minister thoughtful letters with gifts twice a month, month after month, and there was no response," Martel says, insisting that his letters (posted on his website) are not petty or partisan. He notes that previous Conservative governments, including that of Brian Mulroney, have supported the arts. But what Martel and Harper each think is "unacceptable" may be very different...
...CURRENCY 100 Weight, in kilograms, of the Royal Canadian Mint's new jumbo gold coin, which beat out Austria's 31-kg piece-known as "Big Phil"-as the world's largest pure gold coin $1 million Face value, in Canadian dollars, of the new coin. Its current market value is about twice that due to the surging price of gold...