One thing non-Canadians need to understand, is that Canadian politics and society are unique and, frankly, kind of strange. It's almost like the rules that govern reality in other Western countries don't apply here.
I have to remind myself of this when I observe our country through an RVF prism. What might be good for America (Trump) or Europe (resurgence in Nationalism) might not work or even be appropriate for Canada. It's a theme we see playing out in this thread and that one about the Calgary Somali-gangbanger (not jihadis) shooting. Posters who aren't Canadian are viewing developments in Canada from an RVFcentric (American?) perspective and then you have Canadians on the ground chiming in with their own views.
I can understand why outsiders are so baffled. Unless you've lived or grown up here, you'd view developments in this country and (logically) conclude that we're headed for a world of trouble. Yet, it doesn't seem to play out that way. As Scotian wrote a few weeks ago, there's something about this country that makes everybody just chill out.
I think the weather and the vast terrain are a factor in this. It's really easy to have your own space in Canada. If you want to live in a home with some green space (even just a backyard) it's attainable for just about anyone. You can retreat back to your home outside the urban core and chill out in your yard in the summer or in front of the TV in winter, with your car parked in the driveway. It all gives you time to decompress. Who wants to do jihad when they can relax at home in a decent standard of living? The cold weather is an added deterrent.
We also don't have many real urban centres. Toronto is the only megacity we have. Montreal has a big city feel. I'm not sure if Vancouver or Calgary can say that, I've yet to visit those cities. Everywhere else has more of a "big town" feel than that of an urban metropolis. I'd say the closest comparison to about 99% of Canada is the flyover portion of America.
Here's an event that took place a couple of months ago that made me realize that we truly live in a bizarro country:
In the above photo from November, we see the Premier of Ontario, Kathleen Wynne (white veil) sitting in a mosque (not far from where I live, actually). She was there to calm everyone down about the incoming wave of Syrian refugees. This photo was taken about a week after Paris. It's worth noting that Wynne is a lesbian. I looked at this image and asked myself "Who is cucking themselves harder? The lesbian Premier supporting people who despise her way of life or the Muslims for honouring a homosexual in their mosque?" This is the kind of stuff that happens in Canada. So far, it seems to have worked.
I'm still trying to figure out Canada and what makes its politics tick. I don't have all the answers but I can definitely understand why there's such a clash of views on RVF over our politics.