What is Canadian culture?

[SNIPERDUDE]

What is Canadian culture? Without going into the tried and true excuse of multiculturalism and/or choices, what is Canadian culture?
I only ask to stray away from going into multiculturalism because mashing a bunch of other nations' cultures to a land that accepts everything, is not a unique culture. Has our identity been watered down as much as I fear? Even as an Acadian I wonder what really defines us. It seems to me that despite joking about these cliches that have become internationally known, these are really all we have that define us.
I'm curious to know what you guys think.

[Insectoid]

For the most part, Canadians have been assimilated into the Boston/NYC culture (minus baseball) due to most of our media being American broadcast. Kinda sad, really. But we DO have poutine! The Canadian passion for bottled beer is quite strong, I believe. Most of us prefer a cold bottle to a can, whereas bear-in-a-can is a very American thing. We're definitely patriotic, however we're not obvious about it. Most of us don't have Canadian flags in our front lawn (although I do), whereas the media shows Americans have national flags by the dozen. We'll still give you a good ol'...broken nose if you dis our country though.

Oh, and gun culture is virtually non-existent here (at least where I live).

[SNIPERDUDE]

You kind of went into stereotypes there. Vaguely.
I think my point would be better put: Is our culture just a comparison of America?

[Insectoid]

Yes.

We are so similar that the only way to give ourselves an identity is to point out the differences between ourselves and them. Depressing, isn't it?

[SNIPERDUDE]

And these things have been the reason, despite the great qualities of our country, why I wish to move when I graduate. Thinking of someplace like UK, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand, Australia...
Either way living in Toronto for half my life (born in Nova Scotia) I have only learned to dislike many aspects of our country and system.

[jbking]

A point about Canadian culture at least to my mind is to consider how yesterday there seemed to be a lot of the country watching and cheering on our Men's Ice Hockey team. Our culture ties in part to our identity which is a mix of American and British elements. "Tom Brokaw Explains Canada to Americans" is a good short video that explains part of Canada's identity which includes our culture that is a mix of other cultures in some ways. After all, how many other countries in the world have groups similar to the Metis that are actually called something? We aren't as violent as America as we got our independence without have a war and haven't had a civil war either. While in some ways we do compare ourselves to America, they are our neighbour and do have a great impact on us. However, there are some Canadian musical artists and TV shows that have survived over time which shouldn't be lost easily. I find it surprising how sometimes Canadian television airs in the US as shows like "Degrassi: The Next Generation" and "Edgemont" air on a few CW channels down there.

I've lived in Chatham, Ontario, Waterloo, Ontario and Calgary, Alberta and each had its own feel and culture. Chatham is a mix of industrial and agricultural, with auto plants nearby and lots of farm land. Waterloo had more technology and was a bigger city, along with having another city right next door as opposed to 45 minutes away. Calgary is a different world entirely at times as this is the land of Tories, Oil and Gas is the main business and in some ways this is similar to Toronto but with more of a Western flair to it, so BBQs are more common and we have these things called Chinooks.