As a Canadian, I often balk at examples of racism and discrimination so explicit in American politics.In the fallout of Toronto's recent shootings, however, Mayor Rob Ford and Minister Jason Kenney's comments about reviewing "immigration law" (Ford) and "foreign gangsters" (Kenney) are guilty of exactly what members of Mitt Romney's team have done -- attempting to turn certain communities into "others" who are somehow less American or Canadian because they are racial minorities.

Multiculturalism has veered off course when those responsible for our safety -- a major threat to which is Islamist terrorism -- are reluctant to use direct language to describe that threat. Law enforcement officials must be properly and candidly briefed on the role of religious ideology in some strains of terrorism.

A regional court in Cologne, Germany has effectively banned the circumcision of young boys, subject only to medical exception. Such a position has been proposed by various individuals and groups throughout the Western world, and can be refuted along several lines. Male circumcision does not belong in genital mutilation category so long as both parents consent to the procedure and, most importantly, it is performed competently.

It is precisely this welcoming, heterogeneous Canada that makes the contrast with elements of our past so stark. And as our nation's birthday approaches, it would perhaps do us some good to remember how recently our ideas about immigrants changed.

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The Catholic school boards take our taxpayer money and use that to create environments that disregard the rights and values that bind us together as a province and nation. As long as we're the ones footing the bill for your little 'God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve' sideshow, there is no debate.

Whenever someone asks me, "Where did you grow up?", I take a deep breath and usually say, "It's a long story... do you have 10 minutes?". I then launc...

Taking Internet access from poor people should quell the fires of revolt. Soon, they'll respect their betters. They won't mind the bank bailouts, the crooked media that allegedly tapped people's phones, the hard-wired class structure that cuts down people with the wrong background, the wrong accent, the wrong education.

If you favour superstition over science, ideology over evidence, and ego over empathy, you might be a small-minded Canadian. Are we witnessing the closing of the Canadian mind? What about the Alberta tar sands, G20 protests, and prison instead of prevention?

Could Conservatives be targeting certain groups of immigrants for votes -- misleading them on facilitating a swifter immigration process -- while writing off others who came as refugees?

Banning the hijab from soccer has nothing to do with multiculturalism, or reasonable accommodation. It is about people hiding behind the guise of rules in order to effectively discriminate against Muslim women.

Our politicians tend to be older, whiter, more male, better educated and more 'white collar' than the average Canadian. So for those who would prefer a Parliament that better looks and feels more like Canada, the election of a few 20-something MPs is a good thing.

Politicians learn a few words of greetings in an immigrant's native language and occasionally dress like them for photo ops, but new Canadians are the Conservative Party's untapped, natural vote bank.