Jesse Marsch stood up for Canada in a way no one else in his position has

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After some recent discussion on the matter, it turns out that Wayne Gretzky is Canadian. Donald Trump says so.

According to Trump, Gretzky’s not Canadian Canadian. Not the sort the Canadian who lives here and cares about whether his kids have to recite the Pledge of Allegiance before sixth grade Home Ec.

Gretzky is apparently something called a “low key Canadian.” A low key Canadian wants to be American, but isn’t going to make a big deal about it. The low key type is willing to go along to get along.

Trump put all of this in a one-paragraph social media post. I guess this is what he considers doing a solid for a pal: “Please be nice to my friend. Sure, he’s the Fifth Column, but he’s also a great guy.”

I’m still not sure what Trump hates, but I’ll tell you what he loves – commas. If I was in Ottawa right now, I’d make sure that all emails headed south had the periods and full stops excised. Canada doesn’t need negotiators. It needs postmodernists.

We already know the sort of chancers we’re dealing with. What we’re now trying to figure out is who’s running the Canadian pushback. That’s phase two.

Phase one – anthem booing – is over. It was done well and the right people noticed. Mission accomplished. There’s no need to do that any more.

You don’t want to tip over into rage – not that it’s undeserved. That sort of heightened emotional state is unsustainable over long periods. Save it for short bursts, like the Olympics.

What works is regular outbreaks of ‘hell yeah, Canada’ delivered with just the right amount of umbrage. Something that makes people feel warm, rather than hot.

More than anyone else so far, Canadian men’s soccer coach Jesse Marsch has gotten it right.

Marsch brought up the 51st state stuff during a news conference held Wednesday ahead of an upcoming tournament. He did so from the perspective of an American living and working here.

Marsch praised Canada (“embodies for me the ideals and morals of … what life is – integrity, respect and the belief that good people can do great things together”). He also lashed his own country (“As an American, I’m ashamed of the arrogance and disregard that we’ve shown one of our oldest, strongest and most loyal allies.”)

No weasel words, no fumbling around. Marsch did what has begun to seem like the hardest thing in the world for a lot of famous Canadians right now – say exactly where he stands.

Once Marsch did it, it occurred to you that no one else in his position has said anything nearly as strong.

Not that everyone’s had a chance. Plenty of Canadian teams have yet to play internationally since things blew up. Lots of people running pro teams don’t talk every day.

But eventually, everyone in every sport is going to give some sort of news conference wherein they are well able to stop discussing trading for a centre for a minute and say something about where Canada’s at and how they feel about it. This country needs to hear from its friends right now.

There’s no need for loyalty oaths, but there’s also nothing stopping people from weighing in.

These were the same executives, coaches and players who were falling over themselves to issue statements during the first Trump presidency. These were the teams making PA announcements in arenas, asking everyone to take a knee and starting community initiatives.

So we know they know how to take political stands. Everyone who makes their money from sports in this country working in some position of authority should be capable of making a small, Marsch-like gesture on behalf of it now. If not, why not?

A lot of sports people won’t want to do it, including the Canadians. They work here now, but what about five years from now? Is some statement they made on behalf of Canada going to be used as a stick to beat them when they take a job in Dallas?

If that’s unfair, then too bad. If you want to be rich and famous, you may have to assume some actual responsibility.

Jesse Marsch is 51. Were he to take a pretty good Canadian team and push it into, say, the quarter-finals of next year’s World Cup, that would turn him into a hot commodity. His dream job is probably to coach the U.S. national team.

He ruined that for himself on Wednesday. Not for sure, but probably. It would be a lot easier for them to hire someone who isn’t on record saying he is “ashamed” of America.

Marsch must have known he was doing that, and he did it anyway. Because it was the right thing to do given the job he does he now. That’s character.

Canada doesn’t need cheerleaders in this moment. It needs people with character. Character doesn’t mean you automatically believe what I believe. It means you have thoughts and are not afraid to express them.

Are we a country full of ‘low key’ Canadians or are we a country full of those who believe good people can do great things? Who’s willing to do what to maintain our national integrity? How far will you empower a government to go?

This isn’t the time for everyone to stare at their shoes and hope someone else speaks up. You can already see that happening among the oft-interviewed.

It’s time to start talking to each other. Most importantly, to not let outside actors do the talking for us. It already feels like the “51st state discourse” (Marsch’s words) emanates largely from the Oval Office.

At some point, everyone will declare themselves, somehow. Are you someone who lets others do their talking for them, or are you a Jesse Marsch?