CBC Archives: Diefenbaker's Flag Crusade, 1964

[musicbrain5]

My father worked at Orenda Aerospace, as a machinist, with some people who worked on the Avro Arrow project in the 50's, in the very same plant in Mississauga. This was in the 80's, when they were near retirement. Many of them had been fired when Diefenbaker cancelled the production of the Avro Arrow, and only a fraction of those people were re-hired years later.

We could have had the best, fastest, most powerful fighter jet in the world...

[XKS99]

@musicbrain5

My father worked at McDonnell Douglas in Mississauga in the 80s, on the CF-18 and Apache. Dief was on the whole in the right, though perhaps he made a couple mistakes.

[324wilson]

Why can we not have orators like him today?

[Seaworldexists]

Nothings been right in this country since diefenbaker left the PMO.

[Ypipable]

Diefenbaker was merely advising us to be wary of neo-anything away from our traditions. In a way he's right, we don't need any flags, But he misses the point that we need to identify ourselves to be responsible, as Pearson made that more clear before him.

[MajBlood]

Wait a second, did Diefenbaker just compare himself to Cromwell?

[RetroCaptain]

@MajBlood

Yes, only in the manner of desiring to be seen by the public as he was...did not concern himself with "looking like a masterpiece".

[MajBlood]

@RetroCaptain If I were Prime Minister, my portrait would have no scars or moles, I would have a chiseled jaw and chin, my shoulders more broad, 40 pound dropped, and a strong chest.

[MajBlood]

I would like the old flag back.

[324wilson]

@MajBlood Well, I don't think that it will happen again but I think it's rather strange that Canadians were not given a referendum to choose.

[MajBlood]

@324wilson Don't get your hopes up junior. The old flag is superior, most people wanted to keep it in '64.

[00Billy]

canadian flag was on a beer label first.....

[zzzak123]

Dief was the last real Conservative we had as Prime Minister. Conservative as in Red Tory imperialist. The last of an old order not suited to last long into the modern world.

[ThisBoyTV]

The bastard cried when we raised our own flag with the Maple Leaf.

[LiamUe]

@ThisBoyTV

that 'bastard' was crying for the real Canada you'll never know.

[ThisBoyTV]

@LiamUe

did your family go to war during WW II and leave some of them still buried in Europe? Now they will always be remembered as Canadians, not British, because our flag is there for all to see. We are not British we are Canadians something that u will never know.

[LiamUe]

@ThisBoyTV

Yes, actually, from three countries; so don't you dare try to preach your pious at me.

The Red Ensign flies at our world war sites in Europe because it was the flag those people you just tried to guilt me with died under the Red Ensign. Not the Maple Leaf.

I know quite a bit about being Canadian, spending my life here after being born in this beautiful land.

And it is beautiful because of its past.

[ThisBoyTV]

@LiamUe

You haven't been to Europe lately because the Canadian Flag replaced the British flag years ago. Mind you I have little knowledge about "my country" as my family came here in 1536. Guess u newbies don't know much about my country. We are Canadians not British. Live with it!

[LiamUe]

@ThisBoyTV

I see a little entitlement has smacked you up the side of the head in the name of educated facts, mr tv boy.

You obviously have no idea which flags fly at Vimy, for example.

One if French. Two are Canadian. And one of those Canadian flags is the Red Ensign.

BEcuase they fought under it, you sad sorry child - you should know that.

And 1536. That sounds like you're in the first wave of French immigration, likely.

L'Acadie? Are you a 'Canadien'? If so that would make sense

[LiamUe]

@ThisBoyTV

Ps, you obviously lack a general knowledge of correct facts, so it would be appreciated by the academic world if you would do a little creditble, universally accepted, research about your country of which your attachments blindly overlooks history.

The French were, at first, 'Les Canadien'

The British Tories that arrived in British Quebec after 1776 would have adopted the name 'Canadian' within three decades of their arrival.

Thus some Canadians are quite British, thanks

[fishhead06]

The wrong side of history, of course. I still wonder whether he acted out of principle or political expendiency; either way, Dief's position didn't help national unity. His facial mimicry of Pearson was pretty brutal and illustrates the extreme partisanship that Dief legendarily had.

[elmiraviking]

Diefenbakers was a horses ass for cancelling the Avro Arrow. I will always detest the man for that. THEN, the moron goes ahead and spends more on the Bomarc missle system than it cost to develop the Arrow. THEN he spends $20 million on the Diefenbunker.

[darylfn]

Talk about being on the wrong side of history!

[lindsman68]

Too bad the Avro Aarow never happened. We all know the U.S. torpedoed that idea . . .

[Downfacingdog]

He fought the new world order.......and lost.

He lost with the help of assholes like vietminh111

Deif the chief!

[ThisBoyTV]

@Downfacingdog

He fought nothing for nothing. He was the meanest bastard that ever sat in the chair of the PM.

[vietminh111]

If every word spoken by Captain Kirk was its own sentence then every sentence spoken by Diefenbaker lasts 7:25 minutes in length. Seriously, this speech is just one run-on sentence. If we didn't have guys like Pearson then men like Diefenbaker would keep everything as it was in 1867.

[vietminh111]

If every word spoken by Captain Kirk was its own sentence then every sentence spoken by Diefenbaker lasts 7:25 minutes in length. Seriously, this speech is just one run-on sentence. If we didn't have guys like Pearson then men like Diefenbaker would keep everything as it was in 1867.

[JodocusPratensis]

Kennedy on Diefenbaker: "I never want to see that boring son of a bitch again."

To his credit, the boring old tory son of a bitch kept us from becoming America's nuclear launchpad, and this is the reason he should be remembered as a great Canadian, Not his stuffy demeanour and stingy politics, as some would have you believe.

[fredxtini1]

We should become a republic and abolish the Senate!!!!!

[Augie47]

Loved seeing him again. A great speaker, a charming gentleman, but, as another said, a windbag. Pearson was likely the greatest Prime Minister this country has ever had... we will be lucky to see his like again!

[Bioshockerxx]

Dief was the only person at that time that could have saved canada from the Pearson/Trudeau socialists.But the die was cast. I will never fly that french socialist maple leaf flag or recognize it. The Red Ensign is the ONLY true flag of a FREE Canada.We are not free anymore as the whole country is ruled from Quebec.We are being taxed to death with all our money filtered through Quebec.God Bless old Dief.RIP.

[vietminh111]

If the whole country is ruled from Quebec then why is our PM an Ontario born Albertan emigre. Why does the current ruling party right only have 10 of its seats from Quebec and why did the Bloc's attempt to guarentee Quebec 25% of the seats in the house of commons (in the face of Ontario, Alberta and BC getting more just fail). The answer to all these questions you have no idea what you are talking about.

[dumont1957]

"Dief the Chief" - one of the most visionary leaders of the Century.

The Nineteenth Century. What a big windbag.

[MajBlood]

Diefenbaker scares me.

[chrissept21]

you people are so amazingly dumb, we are a country the new flag is canada and if you cant be proud of that then get the fuck outta our country

"the canadian anthem sucks" you say "archulucky" you need to go back to the states and think about that a little bit

im so very proud of my country its amazing and if yall dont like it get out, go sniff the arse of and american

[CSFBC]

this guy was born in the wrong century..loyalty to the british monarchy, god save the queen... was he ever out of touch with the true Canada... Canada was lucky that Dief got the boot and was not allowed to impose his retrograde vision of Canada and keep us in the dark ages of the oppressive monarchy.

[B21983]

ah yes, the 'oppressive monarchy' because the current Canada, which is a monarchy is so oppressive, because the Netherlands, Denmakr, Sweden, and Norway are such backwards, right-wing states!

[dwall57]

Right. So out of touch when he won the largest number of seats (by percent) in canadian history. So out of touch when he stood up for the west in the Trans-Continental Pipeline. So out of touch when he wrote the Bill of Rights that led the way for Trudeau and the Carter.

Sure i can see why the canceling of the Arrow would make you think that, but not over something like the flag, come on.

[russellrush101]

@dwall57 If he had not destroyed 90% of the Canadian Aircraft Industry, I would not hate him so much...

[LiamUe]

@russellrush101

read a book about our entry into NORAD

we couldn't afford both.

[324wilson]

Great speeh and I rather like that old flag, I saw red ensign in my old neighbour's backyard and really liked it.

It truly represents Canada!

[archulucky]

we could have done a better job with a flag for canada , the red and white is pretty blah ! but again the canadian national anthem sucks big time , we should have adopted the maple leaf for ever as our anthem .

[nitzwalsh86]

This may have been my flag from birth, but it had no legitimate reason to be so, Chief.

[searchformurderclues]

the red ensign or the maple leaf?

[nitzwalsh86]

Sorry, the Maple Leaf. I mean that the flag of '65 was a flimzy invention. We would have been as well served to put a Canadian maple and a double double up today. It's tangentially Canadian, if at all. No reflection of the nation we aspire to be, in all its inclusiveness, remains.

[searchformurderclues]

Can't agree with you more, the maple leaf flag does not represent the part of canada in which I live, I think the main thing that bugs me about our current flag, is that it was chosen by politicians, and not the people, which is why, untill the canadian people decide on a flag they want, I will fly a red ensign.

[vietminh111]

First of all, you weren't alive when that decision was made i'm betting, second of all politicians represent the people, if you don't like the ones who reperesent you then vote in someone else. Also you're ignoring that over 3500 suggestions by ordinary canadians were sent to the commitee which chose the final design. Lastly, I can't think of any example in history where "the people" chose their flag, so it makes no sense to suggest it.

[ridley9000]

the flag should have had blue in it

[chrissept21]

why so we can be like the americans?!?

i think not

[ridley9000]

well i just think that i would look good we do have the longest coastline in the world and blue is just a great color but it is missing a color i dont know what that has to do with americans britian has blue in there flag it s just my thought and you have yours cheers

[chrissept21]

all im saying is why cant we be diffrent

[meloveicecream24]

wow...dief nodded

his head a lot

[nitzwalsh86]

And Reagan said Well, and Mulroney said uhhh... and Chretien said... er, and Ralph Klein said 'fuck you, poor people!' minor verbal tics really.

[bulafritz]

What a handsome man

[jessejessejesse3]

Due South was a good show.