Driving from Toronto, past Hamilton on the way to Niagara, a silhouette of iron mills rises on the right. It is an industrial complex that would make Stalin turn Trockist from envy. The smoke coming from its tall chimneys is a sign of progress and a brighter future. Combined with the logging and the oil extraction industry, there is no doubt that the economic forecast is green for Canada.
As any decent 5-year planner would know, there is no point to industry if there is no infrastructure to support it. There are 8 locks on the Welland Canal connecting Lake Erie with Lake Ontario, which is further on connected to the ocean via the St. Lawrence river. Enabling mighty steel ships full of iron to reach all corners of the world. The Canal is producing 35 million $ (Canadian — not freedom — dollars) in Economic activities. Big production numbers are good in socialism.
A few minutes drive past the Canal we finally arrived to the highpoint of our trip, the Niagara border. It is a sunny day and a cheerful crowd masks the fact that this is an unsettling frontier. Flags on both side of the border fligh high on their masts, as if anybody would forget where they are. Less than 100 meters (for some reason they are using both feet and meters in Canada. Sometimes in the same sentence. Example: This nice red banner that we will use to protest American Imperialism should be 1 meter tall and 10 feet long. ?!?) across the river there is the promised land of the rich and the land of working class unfulfilled dreams.
Canadians are not shy to show the freedom-loving, god- (in socialism god is lowercase) fearing Yankees that they can match them in anything and teach them about their mistakes. With the inspiration taken from their Korean comrades, a series of Potemkin’s casinos was constructed along the border, to give pesky Americans a gleaming reflection of capitalist decadence.
And lastly, let’s turn away from political discourse and gaze upon the river biding the two worlds. There is no beauty that can rival that of raw nature. The Niagara river does not simply trickle down but, with mighty force (like a 5-year plan) shapes the landscape. Its mesmerizing waterfalls let you forget, if only for a moment, your daily troubles, releasing your mind to wander off into the land of magic disbelief.
