Is it all over for Canada? There are a number of thoughtful people who think so. Mel Hurtig, however, believes there is still a chance to reassert Canadian independence. But first, Canadians need to understand how much has been lost. Our politicians are not telling us. Our business leaders certainly are not telling us. And our media definitely are not telling us. The border dividing Canada and the United States has never been more fragile. Canada is vanishing. The evidence is available to those who know where to look for it. It can be found in reports published by Statistics Canada, the OECD, the World Bank, the United Nations and its affiliated organizations, and by a variety of research organizations including the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, D.C.

In characteristically pungent prose, Mel Hurtig reveals the truth about health care, the banks, taxation, newspaper conglomerates, political funding, social spending, decentralization, privatization, globalization, sovereignty, competitiveness, Americanization, the war on drugs, corporate concentration, and the quality of life in Canada. He concludes with chapters on the concentration of ownership in the Canadian media, the need for electoral and parliamentary reform, the necessity of asserting Canadian sovereignty, and a final, positive chapter entitled “The Good Country.”

Mel Hurtig is a political activist (founder of the Council of Canadians and leader of the National Party of Canada); a publisher (he oversaw the creation of The Canadian Encyclopedia) and the author of seven books (many of them national bestsellers). He is a Member of the Order of Canada and lives in Vancouver, BC.

Mel Hurtig's profile page

“Exquisitely researched.”
–Monday Magazine
“Hurtig argues convincingly that this country is dying a slow and painful death.…The Vanishing Country is thoroughly engaging and thought-provoking..…This book should be read by every concerned Canadian – fellow travellers and critics alike.”
–Ottawa Citizen

“Mel Hurtig, still a prominent nationalist lion at age 70, is roaring again – and raising hackles – with a new book that suggests the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency may be pulling strings to promote the Americanization of Canada.”
–Canadian Press
“Whatever nasty names Mel Hurtig might be called, he can be accused of neither cowardice nor hypocrisy and certainly not of indolence. His tireless championing of the cause of an economically and culturally independent Canada has been utterly consistent and, yes, in its way courageous.”
–Edmonton Journal

“Mel unquestionably has his finger directly on some very sore spots in the Canadian social fabric.…Mel Hurtig is a doer. To him we owe the creation of The Canadian Encyclopedia, a tremendous national resource. We also owe him another debt: he has never given up on Canada and he has never given up on the value of public debate.”
–Edmonton Journal
“In contrast to the image of Canadians as polite and conciliatory, [Hurtig] is provocative and accusatory…this is strong stuff.”
–Globe and Mail