6 November 2009

Dear Students,

I understand that you have all been the beneficiaries of a comprehensive and multi-themed course on Canada. Canada and the US have long been not merely neighbors but good friends. In fact, my first official state visit after becoming President was to Canada, where I met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper. To my mind, the mark of a good friendship is that there is mutual learning. My question for you, then, is: what can Canada and the US learn from one another? More specifically, please identify and discuss 1 specific policy area in which you think Canada stands to learn from the US, 1 specific policy area in which we could learn from Canada, and 1 specific policy area in which both countries ought to do some serious rethinking. In all three cases, please link your prescriptive advice to a historical explanation for why Canada and the US diverge or fall short. Although, I am given to high idealism, I am also a policy ‘wonk’ so don’t just appeal to cultural values but also to actual empirical details, e.g., structural, institutional, and demographic factors. I would like you to deliver this to me in the genre of a formal argumentative essay (of 12-15pp double-spaced), by 23 Nov. This essay should consist of an introduction, body, and conclusion, in which you make arguments supported with evidence and raise and refute objections or counterarguments, and do so with appropriate references (from scholarly sources not just any old internet hit) duly footnoted and cited. Since I am a busy person, I would ask that you not waste words, nor distract me with poor spelling or bad grammar. I’m sure that your Prof. Basu, and/or his writing assistant, would be happy to meet with you. Good luck, and remember, Yes we can!

Barack Obama

President of the United States of America