‘Traffic referees’ officiating Toronto streets during rush hour

OTTAWA — It wasn’t a political speech or a visionary manifesto that galvanized Canadian nationalism near the start of this century, just a few years after a close-call separation referendum in Quebec and during a period of endless debate about national identity. It was a 60-second television beer commercial that captured the Canadian soul , or at least the English-speaking part of it. The Molson Canadian ad, officially called “The Rant,” offered a new, updated and self-effacing version of how Canadians view themselves. Featuring actor Jeff Douglas playing the role of Joe, the average...