Nicholas Kristof: Thank God for Canada!

I'm sending a bouquet north. View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Thursday, February 7, 2019 [NYTimes.com/Kristof »]( [My win-a-trip winner for 2019, Mia Armstrong of Arizona State University.]( My win-a-trip winner for 2019, Mia Armstrong of Arizona State University. When I was given this column in 2001, a veteran colleague gave me some advice: Mean columns work better than nice columns. I’m going to defy that advice today by tossing a bouquet to the north. On human rights issues, women’s rights, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia and so much more, Canada has provided real international leadership at a time when the United States is on a nationalist tear and Europe is looking inward. And the strange thing is that this is popular in Canada: It’s not that Justin Trudeau is paying a price for doing the right thing, but rather voters reward him for compassionate policies. So [here’s what we can learn]( from Canada about building a society that works and provides international leadership! In other news, I have my win-a-trip winner for 2019 (pictured above)! Join me in congratulating [Mia Armstrong]( a senior at Arizona State University and already an accomplished journalist [who has written for Slate]( and other platforms. My runner-up is [Riley Robinson]( of Northeastern University. I’ll probably travel with Mia to Guatemala or perhaps Haiti, and also take a swing in the United States, perhaps looking at American Indian reservations. Stay tuned! My very first op-ed column for The Times, in late 2001, was from Afghanistan during the war. I jumped on a U.N. flight to Bagram carrying $60,000 on my person, then pleaded poverty in negotiating a ride to Kabul so that nobody would think it worth robbing me. I’ve been back to Afghanistan many times since then and seen the suffering and insecurity first hand, so I’m delighted that the U.S. and Taliban seem near a peace deal. Bravo to Zalmay Khalilzad, the American negotiator, and thanks to Pakistan for belatedly playing a constructive role. I worry about what will happen to girls’ education and women’s programs if the Taliban gain greater sway, but more than 17 years of war and insecurity have been a catastrophe for the Afghan people and peace will benefit everyone. Should we give up Twitter? Is it making us mean? My colleague Farhad Manjoo suggested [largely abandoning Twitter]( a while ago, and some others have joined in. I agree that the discourse on social media is often toxic, but I’m still a believer. Writing about Canada today reminds me why: As my column notes, it turns out that while Americans are mean on Twitter, Canadians issue nice tweets. So, sure, it’s very easy when you’re trying to be edgy or snarky to fire off a mean tweet, but it’s not inevitable. So I’m going to try to write my tweets (I'm at [@NickKristof]( with a Canadian accent. If you didn't get a chance to play with the calculator in [my last multimedia effort]( — how to better spend the $5.7 billion that Trump wants for the wall — try it now. It's a nifty reminder that $5.7 billion actually can do a lot of good and save a lot of lives if we allocate it more sensibly. [Try it!]( I often complain about the lack of gender equality in other institutions — in business, tech, government and so on — but I live in a glass house. Opinion journalism is also male dominated, and this isn’t just true of columns and op-eds. Letters to the editor are also mostly from men, not just those we publish but also those we receive. So the letters editors, Tom Feyer and Sue Mermelstein, have [announced a plea]( for more women letter writers and a pledge to work toward parity on a weekly basis. So, women, fire off your letters to the editor, at letters@nytimes.com. [Here’s my column]( about Canada emerging as a leader of the free world, and what we can learn from it. ADVERTISEMENT You can connect with me on [Facebook](. If you have friends who might enjoy this newsletter, forward this email or tell them they can [sign up here](. Send feedback or tech questions to newsletters@nytimes.com. Recent Columns [How I Would Spend Trump’s Wall Money]( Try it yourself – it’s thrilling to hand out billions! [She Wanted to Drive, So Saudi Arabia’s Ruler Imprisoned and Tortured Her]( The U.S. should pressure Saudis to respect the human rights of outspoken women. What I’m Reading in The Times [The Stacey Abrams Revolution]( By JAMELLE BOUIE She represents a repudiation of the idea that Democrats must downplay “identity” to appeal to the country at large. [It’s Official: 2018 Was the Fourth Warmest Year on Record]( By JOHN SCHWARTZ AND NADJA POPOVICH The only warmer years were 2015, 2016 and 2017, according to NASA records that go back more than a century. ADVERTISEMENT FOLLOW NICHOLAS KRISTOF [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@nickkristof]( [Instagram] [nickkristof]( Get more [NYTimes.com newsletters »]( | Get unlimited access to NYTimes.com and our NYTimes apps. [Subscribe »]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Nicholas Kristof newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2019 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018