>The nations remain like-minded in pockets, but the center of gravity
>in each has changed. French-speaking Quebec, with nearly a quarter
>of the population and its open social attitudes, pulls Canada to the
>left, just as the South and Bible Belt increasingly pull the United
>States in the opposite direction, particularly on issues like
>abortion, gay marriage and capital punishment.
>
>None of those have resonated much over the last decade in Canada,
>where the consensus on social policy seems more solidly formed, its
>fissures narrower and less exploitable.
>
>Chris Ragan, a McGill University economist, observed: "You can be a
>social conservative in the U.S. without being a wacko. Not in
>Canada."