” Oh Canada, who stands watch from sea to sea, who for a lost democracy? Who for a true north strong and free? If not you, then let it be me…”

Posted on by Laila

If you have ever made a moose call from a tin can and wet string, you are so going to get where I come from. If you have eaten rainbow trout for breakfast cooked over a fire, slept under the stars, in the deep woods with only faith to protect you, touched the northern lights and caught snowflakes on your tongue… you will know where I come from. Weiner roasts with willow twigs as sticks, Sorels in winter, outhouses and sometimes a hole in the ground with leaves…. you know where I come from.

This is my country. Your country. Our country. Let’s get it done, shall we? Happy Canada Day, my friends, I love you all. This is the anthem I will be singing this weekend, I hope you do too. Courtesy of my lovely and extremely talented friend, Priscilla Judd

“O Canada we’ve all agreed to
stand for the true north strong and free
with glowing hearts from sea to sea
we stand on guard for thee

O Canada on Native land
we wash the oil from tar and sand
from pipe to power this darkest hour
from sea to shining sea

But who stands watch for the earth below?
stands for the ice and the melting snow?
who for the land to call our home?
Oh Canada I don’t know

O Canada with fossil soil
we frack the gas and mine the coal
for carbon power this darkest hour
from sea to shining sea

but Who looks out for the prairie sky?
stands for the air so none of us die?
who for wind and the birds that fly?
where the planet goes there go I

O Canada from forest green
we ship the logs and cut the trees
and there for the river that meets the sea
with mud and logging debris

O Canada O Canada
who stands watch from sea to sea?
who for a lost democracy?
who for the true north strong and free?

if not you then let it be me”

16 thoughts on “” Oh Canada, who stands watch from sea to sea, who for a lost democracy? Who for a true north strong and free? If not you, then let it be me…””

  1. Happy Canada Day to you Laila!

    Thanks for being a true Canadian with genuine honesty, solid integrity, and for raising critical issues ignored by main stream media. When we all speak truth to power, we can alter this downward spiral of western democracy.

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  2. Thank you Laila,
    When listening I was left awestruck that this is what we have become. In a few short years!
    We as a nation have become pathetic and broken. A handfull of men bring a nation to it’s knees. One man with a few weaker to do his bidding and look what we have been reduced to.
    Now only few of us paying attention agonize about it all with no option but to fight.
    On this Canada day I pray for the strength to do just that.

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  3. They won’t be celebrating Canada Day, eh? at the Canadian Embassy in Washington D.C., preferring to save their entertainment budget for a big fireworks show and party to celebrate the Fourth of July, the birthday of the nation Stevie wishes he had been born in.

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  4. Good Morning Laila,

    just wondering if you have seen this link?
    Enbridge Spin Doctor snarls about Dirty Oil >>
    http://www.frankejames.com/debate/?p=12759

    I am still wondering whether to try to wash the black Bloop off the flag and see if I get to the red and white…. oil stains hard to get out.
    the only way we get it clean is if #DenounceHarper & all the supporter of Endbrige and all the corrupt Politicians & Corporations involved in this Black Mess.
    What do you think?

    Maggie

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  5. That is a beautiful song, sung with a wonderful voice.

    Harper has taken his wrath out on BC, more than a few times. We haven’t changed our minds, we will still fight to save BC from Harper’s greed and fight the Enbridge pipeline.

    Harper will probably set his, RCMP ant-terrorist squad on us. So be it. We have had to fight two terrorist groups, Harper and his ranting raving henchmen and, Harper’s Campbell/Clark BC Liberals. Even the media, has willingly spread all of their lies and deceit.

    I found a lot of humor in this. I was reading of Quebec wanting to separate. One comment was, why doesn’t the rest of Canada separate from Ottawa? That’s the best idea I have ever heard of yet. Can you imagine Harper in Ottawa, only having himself to lie, deceive and dictate to?

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  7. A handful of men have brought a mighty nation to its knees because too many people have been asleep at the wheel. Are we awake yet? Enought to ensure that something like this never happens again? I sure hope so…..

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  8. It is a great link, thanks Maggie.

    To me it’s a sad song in that it’s not so much our anthem, but rather our dirge if the course harper has smashed out of our democracy leads to the realism of “his” ideology that Canada is wrapped in $$ signs for him to sell out to communists, while paying no heed to his own backyard and the people that already inhabit it.

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  9. My Canada Day message to my MP, Randy Kamp….

    On this, the eve of our 145th Canada Day, I just wonder when you look way down deep in your soul, or you look at the faces of your children and grandchildren, if you truly believe that the path that your leader and your government have set for my country, is the best one we could be on. Deliberately side-stepping democracy with your obscenely huge omnibus “budget” bill, which Harper didn’t agree with when he was Opposition, but now magically has seen the light. The determination to foul our beautiful province and coastline with the disgusting Enbridge pipeline and oil tanker traffic proposal, and the undeniable intention to overrule the decision of the Joint Review Panel if it doesn’t abide by the wishes of your leader, and Alberta. The nearly daily revelations of various types of “cheating” to win seats in the past couple of elections, at any cost, and with no regard to fair play of any kind. The extremely sad spectacle of the Canadian Embassy in Washington not even acknowledging our 145th birthday, while at the same time making plans to celebrate the American July 4th. So sad…..

    I can only hope that you don’t. Rather, that up until now, you have been afraid to speak up and out. I can only hope that some of you are having second thoughts about your, so far, unquestioning allegiance to your leader.

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  10. I ain’t got a pretty voice and this is still being roughed-in lyrics-wise, and my guitar’s perpetually out of tune because it’s constantly in the harsh Canadian environment……this is my contribution to the “national song” category and is meant for an anthem for “the Canadian resistance” which is I suppose what we all are now….still working on finding the right words, some passages here are “personal” but the intention is “national”….meant for massed voices. The guitar is tuned low (because of the subzero weather I played this in) but the chord pattern on the fret board for anyone who cares is Am-C-G-Am four times, then C-G-Am for the verse also four times…..

    [audio src="https://dl.dropbox.com/u/4610353/LittleJPartI_5TrueStrong%26Free.mp3" /]

    I have other versions sung on the site of the Newfoundland War Memorial at what is also called the Kings Beach, formally Harbourside Park, which is where the men of Newfoundland marched off to war, and their bodies were brought back home…..today is the anniversary of the Battle of Beaumont Hamel, part of the Battle of the Somme, at which the valiant men of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment were nearly all wiped out after a brave and memorable attack.

    A friend of mine in St John’s is a teacher (and former professional punk musician LOL) who led a large contingent of Newfoundland high school students on a recent visit to Canadian war sites in Europe, including visits to Vimy and Beaumont Hamel; he was interviewed on CBC a few times. He posted this this morning:

    ““The only visible sign that the men knew they were under this terrific fire,” wrote one observer, “was that they all instinctively tucked their chins into an advanced shoulder as they had so often done when fighting their way home against a blizzard in some little outport in far off Newfoundland”
    Let us not forget what 1 July is to us, Newfoundlanders.”

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    1. Skookum,
      I, for one want to say that I felt great passion moving in me while I listened to your song. The rawness of it, for lack of a better word,brought emotion to me that a sweeter tidier version could not bring. Thank you for that!
      Don,

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  11. ooops not that one wasn’t subzero weather, it was mid-August……but the guitar is always low anyway……the tune is mean to be easily singable, for massed voices.

    True Strong and Free
    that’s what we were told we’d be
    True Strong and Free
    that’s what we’re gonna be

    etc etc

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  12. Wishing all a very HAPPY CANADA DAY!!
    Let’s not forget that we still live in a beautiful place, deteriorating or not!
    Peace, and prayers for a successful campaign against harper and his hatred for democracy.

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  15. Au Contraire, ye who at least named yourself correctly as nobodyimportant. You need a prescription and need to be held down and administered the dosage in order to correct your mental deficiencies. The best thing that could happen to you would be to be ambushed by bushels of BC Bud…………………….

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