Squawk8888,
The measures you list exist to a greater or lesser extent in all of the Western so-called democracies. There are individual absurdities everywhere (eg flag-burning in the US, no right to silence in the UK), but surely you would agree that there is little restriction on the expression of opinion in Canada.
Power corrupts. I think PET is a good example of that. I was not in Canada during the final years of his reign, and perhaps would have felt differently about him had I been here. What I look back on as a admirable refusal to put spin or gloss on his policies would at the time perhaps have appeared as arrogance or conceit (`I know what`s best for you`). I think it was a terrible mistake to allow the re-patriation of the Constitution to occur without the approval of Quebec.
However, he changed people`s perceptions of Canada internationally This I can say with confidence because I have lived abroad since 1982. From being seen as a colonial backwater with a provincial mentality, Canada is now known as a country that punches well above its weight in international matters and has a relevant, modern viewpoint in terms of development, aid, peacekeeping etc.
I`m proud of Trudeau`s `cuddling up` to Castro. How better to demonstrate our independence from our cousins to the South? It is important. We are Canadian. We are not American, and it takes people like Trudeau to remind us of the importance of the distinction. Mulroney wants a common currency and trading block with the US. Who is a greater Canadian prime minister? I can`t wait to see how many people turn out for Brian`s farewell...
I hope this post is taken in the spirit it is intended - I don`t want to insult or offend anyone, and I don`t think Trudeau is god. I just think he felt the importance of the `noble experiment` that is Canada, and did his best to make the experiment succeed.