This is an acute case of the syndrome brilliantly described by French writer Pascal Bruckner in Le Sanglot de l’Homme blanc – about the self-hating, teary-eyed White Man who carries on his shoulders all the sins of his ancestors and who ends up patronizing and dehumanizing the people of the Third World (in this case the aboriginals) by refusing them the status of responsible adults.
Mr. Ignatieff’s reinterpretation of the Pauchay story wouldn’t be worth a second thought if he weren’t leader of the Liberal Party and possibly Canada’s next prime minister..
HT to Kate.
