History is easily one of Canadians weakest subjects. It is not well covered in school because as a nation we have so many different histories, often conflicting histories. So we choose to ignore history.

The downsides are many including the idea that a country which spans 10,000,000 square kilometers, rules over many different peoples with different cultures, different histories, in different regions with different desires and visions for the future is ever stable.

You can find such lessons from Ancient History. A reminder that while everything changes, nothing changes. We play the same political games over and over again. Scale may change, players change, location changes but the game is always the same.

This is why any historian knows Canada is not stable. Never has been. Canada is not immortal as one PM said.

It will change. Provinces, nations onto themselves said Tupper, are like colonies.

This is particularly true of the western provinces, which are to this day treated as colonies. Colonies are not stable. These provinces and all provinces, are like fruit, which cling to the tree only until they reach maturity. Once the Phoenician colonies had become self sufficient they did what Carthage did, once the Americans became self sufficient they did what they did.

Often colonies leave before they are ready but leave they will. Without the use of force, something Canadians abhor, you cannot rule a far away people, with a different history, from a different culture, with any long term stability.

Even with force such systems are not always stable though they can appear to be. Before the Iron Curtain fell it was felt by most to be stable. Sure there were some minorities causing problems but nothing a few tanks could not and did easily control. Stability is an illusion.

We will have a radical system upheaval, maybe many. The real question is how we are going to do it.

Will we do it as I suggest, progressively, peacefully or will we ignore the instability and allow fault lines to build pressure?

So far Canada has only concerned itself with one fault line and there is still significant pressure there, which is seen in the 30% there that want to rip the province apart. This suggests Canadians want to believe, and are acting as though they believe, Canada is stable. No significant action is required, besides it can be hard, even painful.

That does not bode well for those who wish to see a peaceful transition into the future. A future where all Canadians have equal rights, regardless of race or founding peoples status. A future where the regions will have equal rights and control over their own future.

We can make that future or continue to stand back and wait for the future providence chooses for us.