Marni Soupcoff has a great one about art subsidies (scroll down page for the rest of series).
The Canadian government has been funding the arts since long before I was born. The CCA was created in 1957, just a few years after CBC television came on the scene, and CBC radio has been around since the 1930s. Clearly, Canadians are accustomed to having their money transferred from their own bank accounts to those of the nation's broadcasters, sculptors and poets. It doesn't seem to bother most of us, but I still think it's been a big mistake.
Frankly, with all the serious things that can harm a country like Canada it's nice to have this one to kick around. I suspect Canadians put up with "welfare art" as penance for their insatiable appetites for American content. American television is better produced and written. A large percentage of Canada's succored hacks couldn't even dare to emulate it. I doubt they even care to.
Therein lies the rub. The "welfare art" crowd thinks Canadians should pay penance, too.
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