As a Canadian I was distressed when the government announced we were committing to the F35. The one huge advantage to the CF18E/F is there is cost certainty. Nobody knows what the final unit costs for the F35 will be but if the cost do not increase from the latest upward revison, (now at least 1.5 times the cost of a F18E) it will be the first modern military aircraft program that manged that feat from this (early) point in its development.
Finally how good is good enough. Who is the realisitic enemy that cannot not be defeated by a generation 4.5 fighter now or even 20 yrs from now ?
In the last 40 years the kill ratio for Western Airforces is in the order of 100 to zero.