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Canada purchased questionable Bomarc missiles and used Vulcan fighters with a fraction of the capability from the US — which ultimately cost more money than completing the Avro program — while simultaneously losing their aerospace capabilities.

To say this was a “win” for Canada is pretty far-fetched. It certainly was a win for the US military-industrial complex and their lobbyists!

This is Canadian culture in a nutshell, especially politically: it's better to aim small or not to try at all than it is to really go for it and fail.

The difference is, US is replacing the shuttle with (privately made) US rockets. The transition is not complete yet, but ultimately both the manufacturing capability and profits are staying in the US. Can't say the same for Canada.

I can capture all the wild stallions I want, but as soon as I open the pasture gate they will be gone.

The idea isn’t to temporarily feed them with some completely uneconomic project. You want to give them reasons to stay long term. So why is Canada such a poor place to build technology companies?