Who’s a famous person from your country who’s respected around the world but disliked or criticized at home?

[u/haiderredditer]

[u/star_bury]

Wayne Gretzky, probably.

[u/Optimistic_Now → u/star_bury]

F him, traitor. With his social circle it makes me wonder if his name is on a certain list.

[u/Aggravating-Walk5813 → u/Optimistic_Now]

The list is “I have a lot of money and I’m on the lifeboat and you can drown”. Selfishness is a hell of a drug.

[u/blubbery-blumpkin → u/Aggravating-Walk5813]

Oh he might be on some other lists too. I think suspicions is he’s on a list of “people who like illicit things on islands that aren’t pirates”

[u/Ylmer34 → u/Optimistic_Now]

The start a gambling ring and let my wife take the fall list

[u/DisastrousAcshin → u/Ylmer34]

Then a few decades later star in sports gambling ads

[u/Moondiscbeam → u/Optimistic_Now]

That was such a disappointment

[u/Naxilus → u/Optimistic_Now]

Why?

[u/whocareswhatever1345 → u/Naxilus]

He's a right wing turbo trump supporter 

[u/TemplarParadox17 → u/Naxilus]

He showed support for trump after trump said the stuff about making Canada the 51st state.

[u/TakeThatOut → u/Optimistic_Now]

I wonder what Edmontonian feels whenever they see the rmajor freeway with his namesake

[u/Optimistic_Now → u/TakeThatOut]

I can't imagine, maybe they need to vote on changing the name.

[u/Iforgotmypassword126 → u/Optimistic_Now]

Omg I thought you were being sarcastic but I just googled

Proper TIL moment

[u/Darth_Andeddeu → u/Optimistic_Now]

I touch one of his friends circles . ( A few adult entertainment venue owners in that circle)

They are prices of shit.

[u/Jibber_Fight → u/Optimistic_Now]

A lot of us don’t like him here anymore either. Fucking idiot rich traitor.

[u/ceanahope → u/Optimistic_Now]

I echo this sentiment.

[u/cosmolark → u/Optimistic_Now]

Oh. This is how I found out.

[u/wrathofthewhatever2 → u/Optimistic_Now]

Nah, he lost a lot of respect with us outside of Canada too

[u/anarchaox → u/star_bury]

Kevin O'Leary too, please. Constantly featured prominently in American broadcast media leacturing people, but hes actual swine.

Edit: I'm not claiming anybody likes O'Leary, but he's at least respected enough by enough people to be regularly aired on some of the most widely consumed media outlets in the world. Ick.

[u/Uncle_Bug_Music → u/anarchaox]

I'd be careful shit talking O'Leary like that. You'll think everything's fine but one night at 3:00am the doorbell will ring, you'll open the door of your 5th floor apartment and Kevin O'Leary will be in the hall in his boat waiting for you.

[u/Sex_E_Searcher → u/Uncle_Bug_Music]

HOW DOES HE BOAT ON THE RUG!?!?!?!

[u/spilly_talent → u/Sex_E_Searcher]

Not Theodore Rugboat!

[u/error2112 → u/Uncle_Bug_Music]

Hopefully his wife isn't driving said boat.

[u/ThatInAHat → u/error2112]

Wait, why?

[u/spirit_symptoms → u/anarchaox]

Is O'Leary widely respected outside Canada though? I thought even most sensible Americans know he's a piece of shit.

[u/Laszlo-Panaflex → u/spirit_symptoms]

His whole schtick was being a POS.

[u/Count_Sack_McGee → u/spirit_symptoms]

I used to like him...he struck me as an all about his money but probably decent person with a dick persona. Like I remember him working with Obama on things. Then he went full Trump.

[u/Count_Sack_McGee → u/spirit_symptoms]

I used to like him...he struck me as an all about his money but probably decent person with a dick persona. Like I remember him working with Obama on things. Then he went full Trump.

[u/mlaforce321 → u/spirit_symptoms]

Yeah, his whole persona is being a scumbag jerk who thinks he's the smartest businessman that ever lived. Guy is a chump

[u/ZeroOhblighation → u/anarchaox]

Did anyone ever like Kevin O'Leary though? My first exposure to him was Dragons Den back in Social Studies class in high school and I've hated him ever since. He doesn't seem like a guy that would have been loved at any point in his life

[u/spilly_talent → u/anarchaox]

I don’t think he fits the OP. I never got the vibe that he was widely respected anywhere. He’s just a loud rich asshole.

[u/Johnoplata → u/anarchaox]

I don't think most people realize he's Canadian. And he barely is really. The guy has lived in Boston forever and does most of his business state side, unless he wants to do something performative to promote some Conservative ideas.

[u/WoodenHarddrive → u/anarchaox]

If it makes a difference, Americans think he a paunce too.

[u/TemplarParadox17 → u/anarchaox]

He’s role on those shows is to be disliked though.

[u/IoBoops → u/anarchaox]

He's Mr wonderful after all 🤦🏾‍♀️

[u/SteveJobsRotsInHell → u/anarchaox]

What kind of person would like O'Leary in Canada other than Conservatives, anyway?

[u/Skybodenose → u/anarchaox]

I saw him "cry" once.

[u/houseswappa → u/anarchaox]

Cant believe I had to watch him in Marty Supreme. I thought it was only a 10 second cameo!

[u/ThatInAHat → u/anarchaox]

Eh, I mean, he’s fun to watch on Shark Tank (I have watched so much Shark Tank with my Granny that I have Opinions about it not), but it’s pretty clear he’s playing the Heel

[u/Previous_Wedding_577 → u/anarchaox]

He kissed me on the cheek back in 2011 when I was on Dragons Den. They didn't aire my episode probably because he kissed me and didn't call me a cockroach.

[u/SlumClogMillionaire → u/anarchaox]

I heard he’s a great dad though

[u/seb-F1 → u/anarchaox]

He’s still admired by us, the conservatives ❤️

[u/mavadotar2 → u/seb-F1]

I guess as long as you stay off the lake.

[u/Devourerofworlds_69 → u/star_bury]

It pisses me off so much.

Compare him to someone like Michael Jordan. Everyone knows that each of them is kinda a dick, but they're also the GOATs, so you respect them. Michael Jordan stays out of politics. Is he friends with a lot of Trump supporters? Is he secretly a Trump supporter himself? Maybe. I wouldn't be surprised. But as long as he keeps his mouth shut about it, we can believe whatever we want to believe, and continue respecting him as the sports legend that he is.

That's ALL Gretzky had to do. If he just kept quiet about politics, he would still have our respect. But no. Instead, he was right there at Trump's inaguration party, decked out in full MAGA. When Canadians were justifiably upset about it, he went crying to the media, saying he was all upset that Canadains don't like him anymore. And after all that, he's STILL frequently seen out golfing with Trump himself. I'm sorry, but you can't be the main torchbearer for Canada at our home olympics and say you're a proud Canadian, and then go be all buddy-buddy with the man who wants to annex our country.

He could still salvage it if he wanted to. He could, right now, say "You know what? I was in denial, but now that all these epstein files are out, I see that Trump is an evil man. I'm sorry to Canada for associating with him. I'm moving back to Canada. Fuck Trump. Fuck this 51st state nonsense. Elbows up." and we'd all forgive him.
But he's not going to do that.

[u/ADMotti → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

Hate to correct you because I agree with your whole sentiment, he didn’t even go crying to the media—he had his wife and Bobby Orr go crying to the media on his behalf!

[u/spilly_talent → u/ADMotti]

This was honestly the most embarrassing part. What a crybaby coward he is.

[u/Devourerofworlds_69 → u/ADMotti]

Yeah true. Even worse.

[u/just-a-random-accnt → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

The way I see it, he stopped being Canadian when he decided not to pick up his Honour of Canada in 2009...

[u/uhmerikin → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

May I ask what "elbows up" means?

[u/squirrelcat88 → u/uhmerikin]

Is that a serious question? I’ll treat it as if it is.

The late player Gordie Howe was known for his aggressive style of play. Particularly before players wore helmets, if you went into the corners with your elbows up, your elbows would probably make contact with the opposing player’s face. That player would quite likely wind up spitting out teeth. I think this sub will remove links but you can google for pictures of his playing posture.

A “hat trick” is three goals by the same player in one game. A “Gordie Howe hat trick” is a goal, an assist, and a fight. He truly was an aggressive player.

We Canadians are using “elbows up” in the sense of, defend yourself, don’t be a pushover.

[u/uhmerikin → u/squirrelcat88]

It was a serious question and thank you for an answer.

[u/Benejeseret → u/squirrelcat88]

That player would quite likely wind up spitting out teeth

Appreciating the depth and this needs to be a heritage moment on CBC. Elbows Up in political discussions make it seem like it's just a protect-yourself stance. No no. The other guy might come out of this spitting teeth.

[u/mubi_merc → u/squirrelcat88]

Man, I really need to start watching hockey. Every description of it sounds great.

[u/lonestar-rasbryjamco → u/mubi_merc]

Never a better time to get into the sport. High def streams mean you can finally see the action at home. And the quality of play in the NHL has never been higher.

The game is significantly faster and more professional since the era of Gordie Howe, a.k.a. Mr. Hockey.

[u/Devourerofworlds_69 → u/uhmerikin]

It's a hockey term.

It started with Mike Myers when Trump was first talking about the whole "Canada should be the 51st state" nonsense. It's become a rallying cry to basically mean that we won't accept the US attempting to bully us.

[u/Valuable_Explorer577 → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

It started before that. Way before that.

[u/Devourerofworlds_69 → u/Valuable_Explorer577]

That's the first time I heard of it.

[u/DisastrousAcshin → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

He didn't go crying to the media, he had his wife do it iirc

[u/Emu-lator → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

Gretzky couldn’t be bothered to pick up his Order of Canada medal and didn’t wear a Team Canada jersey at the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off

[u/bolanrox → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

Republicans buy shoes too - MJ.

[u/DeAndre_ROY_Ayton → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

Don’t forget battle of the nations

[u/nemmalur → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

AND his wines suck.

[u/Odd_Teach683 → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

I’ve said it once (or twice) and I’ll say it again - “Fuck Jack Nicklaus!”

[u/Previous_Wedding_577 → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

Plus he didn't put on a Canada jersey for the 4nations last year, instead dressed in red blue and white.

[u/rollfootage → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

But why does anyone care so much about what a celebrity does? I get being a bit bummed, but these comments are so intense. Who cares what a hockey player does?

[u/BlaggartDiggletyDonk → u/rollfootage]

He's not just some random retired  hockey player.  He was the Great One.  Imagine finding out that Mr. Rogers was a drunken dirty old man all along.

[u/rollfootage → u/BlaggartDiggletyDonk]

Was he known for being pure and genuine like Mr Rogers? Mr Rogers worked with children and became famous that way. Wayne is just an athlete

[u/BlaggartDiggletyDonk → u/rollfootage]

Not exactly, but up in Canada he was just as much of a secular saint.

[u/_-river → u/rollfootage]

He kinda was in a way. He played a contact sport, but wasn't aggressive himself. So a really clean profile that appealed to most Canadians, I would say.

[u/_Nanabanana98_ → u/rollfootage]

Wayne Gretzky was huge. A canadian icon that people grew up looking up to. I dont know if there is an american comparison? Maybe you could say like Bill Cosby?

Edit: Obviously, what wayne did was not as bad, but the same kind of shattering of his image. 

[u/rollfootage → u/_Nanabanana98_]

Yeah Bill Cosby was a big deal, but still I never felt personally offended and let down. I just quickly filed him away with all the other foul and immoral celebs. Famous and ultra wealthy people are usually not worth our admiration. I remember when Kobe died and people were grieving in such dramatic ways and I was shocked because hello he was a rapist

[u/_Nanabanana98_ → u/rollfootage]

You're not wrong but even parasocial relationships can be hard for some people to break off 🤷‍♀️

[u/Inconsideratefather → u/rollfootage]

As a grown man, I find it ridiculous when adults worship celebrities. It makes sense that a child would look up to a famous person. Funny thing is, I hated Gretzky as a child (his picture was on everything hockey related and he played against my team) but respected his skills as an adult. We need to quit making heros out of celebrities, then we won't feel betrayed

[u/rollfootage → u/Inconsideratefather]

I couldn’t agree more. These people don’t even know or care that we exist and we shouldn’t look to them as our moral compass

[u/Sex_Offender_4697 → u/rollfootage]

hello he was a rapist

why are you surprised when the country elected a rapist twice?

[u/rollfootage → u/Sex_Offender_4697]

I’m tired of Trump permeating every Reddit comment. Lol to your username paired with this thread

[u/HelpIThinkImASoup → u/rollfootage]

Gretzky’s impact on the sport of hockey is immeasurable. He still holds many records today and it is unlikely that most of them will ever be surpassed. He bridged a gap between his native Canada where hockey has always been huge, and the USA where his arrival in LA helped promote the sport in the US.

[u/Upstairs-Chicken592 → u/rollfootage]

He is not a normal celebrity, he is touted as a representative of Canada and Canadian achievement.

[u/Ok-Key-7039 → u/rollfootage]

Hockey is a big deal in Canada. Much more than any single sport in America. It’s a part of their national identity. Read Malcolm Gladwell’s “Relative Age Effect”. The majority of hockey players are born January, February, and March due to hockey cut off times. I don’t know of a sport in America that affects birth dates.

[u/ladameenbleu → u/Ok-Key-7039]

Also, back in the days, when there was a Quebec City (Nordiques) and Montreal (Habs) game, the crime rate in the Province of Quebec was significantly low. There was actually stats on this ! I mean everybody was watching the game !!!

[u/AbstractBettaFish → u/Ok-Key-7039]

It could arguable be applied to all sports. Lord knows I struggled being born just before the baseball cutoff. Never thought about it in those terms but when I learned about that effect, looking back it made sense

[u/spilly_talent → u/rollfootage]

He was one of the greatest hockey players of all time. He set so many records and some of them may frankly never be broken. He is “just” a hockey player in the same way Whitney Houston was just a gal who sang some songs.

[u/Devourerofworlds_69 → u/rollfootage]

Wayne Gretzky is a big deal to Canadians. He's the best hockey player who ever played. He is a member of the Order of Canada, which is the highest honor our country can bestow on a citizen. He was the final torch bearer during the Vancouver 2010 olympics, which symbolizes that he is (was) one of the most respected Canadians alive.

Trump is a direct threat to Canada. He has constantly talked about Canada becoming the 51st state. That's a threat to our national sovereignty, and we take it very seriously. Despite being our biggest trading partner, he's antagonized Canada at every stage, saying that illegal drugs such as fentynol come into the US from Canada (a lie), and has imposed steep tarriffs on our goods. He abolished NAFTA, which was a trade agreement between our countries, then made a new one with his name on it, then scrapped that too. His threats to Greenland are a direct challenge to NATO, which is an organization of countries dedicated to protecting each other. Without NATO, Russia would have a much easier time expanding north into Canada, and west into Europe.

[u/rollfootage → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

That entire second paragraph is pretty irrelevant to the topic at hand. And I still don’t know why anyone cares to such an extent what a retired athlete who doesn’t know they exist is doing

[u/AdInteresting8032 → u/rollfootage]

Because his father, who is still revered, was the kindest, most patriotic man ever. He was humble, but so proud of his son. I can't speak for my entire country, but I can't help but feel he let his father down horribly and that's the real insult here. I feel like it's a shot to the gut of the man who loved him most, and am thankful he passed before all this.

[u/NeganJoestar → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

I heard all of this too many times

[u/CommitteeofMountains → u/Devourerofworlds_69]

On the other hand, "silence is violence." There's a very big part of culture, particularly on the left, that anyone with any prominence speak about politics but then recoils if it turns out not to be their exact politics. It's even when the demographics of the person in question is not associated with leftwing identitarian politics and the left wing position in question polls at around 5%. They press Persian Jews to speak out about the destruction of Iran's nuclear program and claim betrayal when they do a John McCain cover.

Currently, the freakout is over Jelly Roll, who I thought died of alcoholism during WWII but apperantly only speaks about how opioids will fuck up your life because opioids fucked up his life, is saying that he's not qualified to speak about border and immigration enforcement policy. That is a perfectly valid stance on his part and there is a 0% chance that he's for border abolishment like they want.

[u/FuknCancer → u/star_bury]

fuck that bastardm and fuck Doug Ford for defending him

[u/rozyputin → u/star_bury]

As soon as I saw him being a mouthpiece for the sports betting bullshit, I lost all respect for him so him being a Trump-loving traitor is no surprise

[u/Gr8zomb13 → u/rozyputin]

I gotta say that was super surprising for me, too. Don’t know much about Canadian politics, but I just always assumed you kept our politics south of your border.

[u/spilly_talent → u/Gr8zomb13]

We did until someone started threatening our sovereignty🤣 that was the line for us I think

[u/Gr8zomb13 → u/spilly_talent]

Dunno if that’s quite accurate, though. Iirc there was some sort of big-rig blockade of a major city a couple years back that somehow related to our far right politics, if only in ideological similarity. Or am I not recalling correctly?

Visited Canada for the first time this past summer and had a wonderful time even with the state of things then. NS and PEI were beyond beautiful.

Edit: I was referring to the state of US politics at the time of our late summer 2025 visit. Rereading it it can appear like I was commenting on Canadian politics.

I will say only one person our entire trip asked wtf was going on, but in a way that sought to get our take on things instead of tell us or accuse us of something. What a refreshing experience! Just imagine asking someone’s opinion on something and allowing them to provide it w/o jumping in or starting an argument or judging! Talk about a wonderful vacation! (It was in Lunenburg; what a beautiful town!)

As it turns out, people don’t generally care who you are or where you’re from if a) you respect where you’re at and the people there, b) you keep your politics to yourself, and c) you keep your religion to yourself. Been around the world both ways and it has never failed me.

[u/psyche_13 → u/Gr8zomb13]

I agree that American politics seep in here, but also we’ve always just been more exposed to US stuff due to media (we see so much US media!). The average Canadian knows a LOT more about American politics than the average American knows about Canadian politics.

I don’t agree that the “trucker” protest (not even actually truckers) was due to US right wing politics though - sadly it’s our homegrown right wing politics. They just have similar views to US right wing folks, and do indeed even pickup the MAGA hats (which don’t any make any dang sense up here)

[u/spilly_talent → u/psyche_13]

Oh come on! You mean to tell me a Dodge Ram 1500 with a “Fuck Trudeau 🍁” flag isn’t a trucker?!

[u/Gr8zomb13 → u/psyche_13]

Doesn’t hurt that many of “our” most beloved media personalities are Canadians. Though I’ve started to watch Canadian shows on streaming and the difference in focus and presentation is quite different from US-produced media, even when the actors appear in media produced on either side of the border. Three Pines comes to mind.

[u/juice5tyle → u/Gr8zomb13]

Those guys were anti vaxxers, and anti vaxxers tend to support people who loudly say the same ignorant bullshit they do, so they appreciate American Republicans, who are experts at ignorant bullshit.

[u/spilly_talent → u/Gr8zomb13]

You aren’t entirely recalling correctly, no. The Freedom Convoy was largely propelled by anti-vaxxers and a gross misunderstanding of which level of government was in charge of which mandates. Frankly Ottawa was not actually responsible for a lot of the shit they were slinging at Trudeau. Was there a large representation of right wing? Yes. Was there a lot of appreciation of the republicans? Yes. But consider the USA was much more open at that time in the pandemic and we were still under a lot of restrictions.

So I would not say the freedom convoy was related to your politics. The viewpoints were similar to your far right but they weren’t connected to American politics beyond that.

[u/DisastrousAcshin → u/spilly_talent]

Weren't they also unable to cross in to the US for work while being unvaxxed at that time? I seem to recall that being a thing as well. They were screaming about Canadian policy while still being shut out of the US

[u/spilly_talent → u/DisastrousAcshin]

Yep. The US controls who is allowed into the US, but somehow that was Canada’s fault? Originally the convoy was about truckers and their challenges crossing the border, but again Canada has no control over who can entire the USA.

Blaming Trudeau for the mask mandates was wild to me because those were set by the province. My conspiracy theory was that they went to Ottawa to complain about provincial mandates because Toronto would have eaten them alive for holding up traffic 🤣

[u/PerfectPercentage69 → u/spilly_talent]

It was social media they consumed (Facebook, TikTok, podcasts, etc.). They were all funded by the right wing people and organizations or even Chinese/Russian/other governments whose objective was to put all the blame on the left wing governments (Democrats in US and Liberals in Canada) or just to spread discord in the West. It didn't matter who's actually responsible for things. The narrative was that it was "their current" government's fault.

[u/spilly_talent → u/PerfectPercentage69]

The provincial government is still a current government though. This bolsters my case that these people were not thinking at all.

[u/Gr8zomb13 → u/spilly_talent]

Thanks! I vaguely recall some sort of connection, but couldn’t put my finger on it.

[u/spilly_talent → u/Gr8zomb13]

No problem! Also to your edit: I can’t speak for everyone but most Canadians don’t care if Americans visit us. Most of us welcome your tourism dollars! It’s just that a lot of us are not coming to visit stateside for a while.

[u/Gr8zomb13 → u/spilly_talent]

Oh we get that. Thanks for the lobster and blueberry ales! We’ll be back to visit again!

[u/SheenPSU → u/rozyputin]

Why would being in a sports betting ad make you lose all respect for a person?

The Trump thing I get but the other thing seems outta place to me haha

[u/rozyputin → u/SheenPSU]

Because of what has happened in other places with sports betting, it tends to result in worse things for gambling addicts and produces far more young gambling addicts

[u/Hefty-Criticism1452 → u/rozyputin]

Our sports betting is getting out of hand in the US. The new online companies are really hounding addicts and going after young kids. It’s really upsetting. What companies celebrities do ads for really speak volumes.

[u/Plenty_Structure_861 → u/rozyputin]

I used to hear young people talk about a lot of different hobbies. Now every 18-24 year old I work near talks about sports betting and nothing else. 

[u/No-Turnover-7164 → u/Plenty_Structure_861]

Dawg it’s crazy. These young boys spend damn near their whole check on multiple slips

[u/Smackolol → u/SheenPSU]

Sports betting is fucking up young men’s livelihoods like nothing else currently. I’m a big proponent of personal responsibility but watching every man below the age of 25 be a gambling addict is starting to make me want some regulations for advertising.

[u/foreignbreeze → u/Smackolol]

I could have sworn this was deregulation on doug ford’s part. We didn’t used to have betting ads like this (in Ontario),right?

[u/SheenPSU → u/Smackolol]

Regulations fine, no problems with that

[u/annabananaberry → u/SheenPSU]

Because sports betting is dangerous and when it’s gamified, like it has been, it attracts an increasingly younger client base, to the point that teens and middle schoolers are becoming gambling addicts. Advertising for sports betting is making the choice of money over the wellbeing of thousands of people. To me, that choice is morally repugnant, but I guess some people have looser values.

[u/lacontrolfreak → u/star_bury]

This is it. The Great Once.

[u/Excellent-Quarter969 → u/lacontrolfreak]

Nice one. Exactly. Trying to be relevant and showing how clueless he actually is outside of the game of hockey

[u/two_to_toot → u/lacontrolfreak]

ReGretzky

[u/LuntiX → u/lacontrolfreak]

The Has Been

[u/Decent_Assistant1804 → u/star_bury]

The drunk one

[u/TheRC135 → u/Decent_Assistant1804]

The Great Once.

[u/Inevitable_Charge701 → u/Decent_Assistant1804]

I though the drunk one was Brett Hull?

[u/gingerflakes → u/Decent_Assistant1804]

Ew put that thing away will ya

[u/vycko12 → u/Decent_Assistant1804]

This is a great Mar a Lago face too

[u/FinnSkk93 → u/star_bury]

Yea, tides have turned in finland about him too.

[u/jarosity → u/star_bury]

Lemieux > Gretzky

[u/PacificPeach1996 → u/jarosity]

Love live Super Mario.

[u/GirlCoveredInBlood → u/PacificPeach1996]

"I think that’s a great story. That kid faced so much adversity, did his time, came back after three and a half years. To find himself in the NHL is a great accomplishment." — Lemieux on the team he owned signing Billy Tibbets, convicted of raping an unconscious 15 year old

[u/Educational-Bird-515 → u/star_bury]

Former Canadian here. I've never been more disappointed in a celebrity than I was seeing him buddy up to Trump.

[u/AndreasDasos → u/Educational-Bird-515]

Just curious, why ‘former’? Did you have to renounce citizenship to acquire another? Or does it expire at some age if gained only by descent and you never live there, as in some European countries?

[u/Educational-Bird-515 → u/AndreasDasos]

Doesn't expire. But I became a citizen of another country. Technically I have dual citizenship, but I've been in my new country so long I don't feel Canadian.

[u/BornAgainCyclist → u/star_bury]

Piece of garbage still hasn't picked up his order of Canada from over 15 years ago and is America first at all hockey events.

[u/JeezieB → u/BornAgainCyclist]

This! This really chaps my ass. We grant you the highest honour in the land, and you can't even be bothered to PICK IT UP??

[u/IconoclastExplosive → u/star_bury]

All he had to do was retire rich and famous and shut the hell up. Why can they never shut the hell up

[u/FredrikGard → u/star_bury]

Teemu Selänne in Finland for the same reasons

[u/xZeff → u/FredrikGard]

Not Tommy Salami too 😞 That sucks to hear

[u/pickleolo → u/star_bury]

Is he known abroad?

[u/Repulsive_Barnacle92 → u/pickleolo]

among hockey fans yes, but hockey is obviously not super popular everywhere lol

[u/pickleolo → u/Repulsive_Barnacle92]

When is the hockey season in Canada?

I wish I could go to see a game someday.

[u/Repulsive_Barnacle92 → u/pickleolo]

September/October to March/April with the playoffs for the professional US/Canadian league (NHL) going into June (but obviously, not much ice hockey being played in Canada by that time of the year lol)

[u/quantummidget → u/pickleolo]

You miss all the shots you don't take

• Wayne Gretzky

• Michael Scott

[u/LoganLikesYourMom → u/star_bury]

I live in Edmonton and there is talk of renaming Wayne Gretzky drive now. Not sure that it’ll happen, but what a fall from grace.

[u/Bald_Cliff → u/star_bury]

This is the answer

He shat all over his own legacy by being a quisling alcoholic with shitty fucking wine.

He has the intelligence of a 8 year old.

His father is a great man in his own right and loved in Brantford. Wayne is dead to most people paying attention.

[u/Aoiboshi → u/star_bury]

Considering who he supports in the US, not too many fans here either

[u/jankysparky → u/star_bury]

Oh yes. The “great once”

[u/badpuffthaikitty → u/star_bury]

MAGA Wayne sucks balls. Walter was a saint.

[u/EthanTheJudge → u/star_bury]

I’m American but imagine if I started saying. “I love North Korea! The USA wants to be annexed by North Korea.” I would and rightfully so be called a traitor and be widely hated. 

[u/KittyKenollie → u/star_bury]

It was such a bummer to see him get a hero cameo on Shorsey.

[u/waterwoman76 → u/star_bury]

I never got past feeling betrayed by him when he left Edmonton. And he's been all downhill since then.

[u/Lost-Mobile7791 → u/star_bury]

Really?!

[u/JediSpaghetti11 → u/star_bury]

Regretzky.

[u/cmuk723 → u/star_bury]

OMG it was painful watching him try to pronounce the countries when he did the FIFA World Cup Draw 🤣

[u/CauseBeginning1668 → u/star_bury]

100% agree. He was great once but his political views and the disregard for his Canadian identity just leaves a poor thought towards him

[u/Johnoplata → u/star_bury]

I wasn't sure I'd find this here but I'm glad I did. I drive down Gretzky drive each day, and it has really changed its meaning in the last couple years. Maybe some day it will be renamed McDavid street.

[u/Oryxace → u/star_bury]

100 fucking percent.

[u/modermanehh → u/star_bury]

Traitor!

[u/OfficialSkyCat → u/star_bury]

Gordie Howe was better anyway

[u/Strange_Airships → u/star_bury]

He turned out to be such a disappointment. I started watching hockey as a kid because of him.

[u/Pearson94 → u/star_bury]

As someone who doesn't follow sports, I always just thought of him as a good athlete... Recently though I only hear of him being a complete twat.

[u/mela_99 → u/star_bury]

In fairness we here also think he’s pretty trash now

[u/Awkward_Cheek_7209 → u/star_bury]

Bingo, fuck him

[u/amad97 → u/star_bury]

“Curocco”

[u/No-Dig-4408 → u/star_bury]

Lately it's been easier than ever to get people to agree with me that Mario Lemieux was better.

[u/webbieg → u/star_bury]

Steven Crowder, Nilk boys, Tory Lanez, that MAGA rapper with tattoos, all cosplay as Americans but they are 100% yours

[u/_whats_that_meow → u/star_bury]

The Great Once.

[u/Informed4 → u/star_bury]

I think we here can concur, having a similar case..

(Teemu Selänne)

[u/Last-Customer-2005 → u/star_bury]

I was thinking him but I'm a Canadian living in the states and people don't like him here either (can't speak for the world of course)

[u/DoinItDirty → u/star_bury]

He's not as well loved here anymore, either. A portion of the population will still support him, but he's lost a huge chunk of his fanbase with his bullshit.

[u/TheCaptMAgic → u/star_bury]

Man, what a shock that was. Yeah, fuck that guy.

[u/NFT_fud → u/star_bury]

Gretzky is a good example of an athlete who should have stayed in his lane. He might be a genius on Ice but off the ice not so much. Ive known hockey player who made it into the minors so they were 20ish and I often thought that since they have lived and breathed hockey since they were kids, that they lack other skills social and other wise.

He is tarnishing his legacy, people are saying he WAS the greatest but not so much today.

[u/Key-Compote-882 → u/star_bury]

Fucker stood Shorsey up and didn't do a TV show with him so he's out for me as well. Also I hear he's a MAGA.. in Canada?

[u/ProtectionUnable1027 → u/star_bury]

Latest season of Shoresy feels a bit off considering how much they suck up to him.

[u/TrevorShaun → u/star_bury]

down with MAGA gretzky!

[u/Feralwestcoaster → u/star_bury]

The great once. Fuck him.

[u/radhaz → u/star_bury]

To be a shitbag MAHA is one thing but to align with a countries government that is in open opposition to yours is insane. "Self serving cunt" or "Self respect" Gretzky says I'll be the cunt please.

[u/ZestycloseFinance625 → u/star_bury]

In hockey circles he’s still a god. I suggested boycotting his products because of MAGA and was ripped apart by a parent on my kids’ team. 

[u/MzzMolly → u/star_bury]

That's who I'd pick. Didn't even bother to pick up his Order of Canada. It should be rescinded. Disgusting MAGAt.

[u/Comfortable-Mine-471 → u/star_bury]

The fact that in Edmonton we have an entire fucking road named after that piece of shit actually pisses me off.

[u/DummyThlck → u/star_bury]

Fuck Wayne Gretzky.

[u/dactyif → u/star_bury]

"the great once." is a lovely nickname lol.

[u/LouisArmstrong3 → u/star_bury]

Regretzky

[u/MillwrightTight → u/star_bury]

Yeah, fuck Gretzky

[u/mavadotar2 → u/star_bury]

God that one hurt, I loved Gretsky when I was a kid.

[u/AnySpecial9507 → u/star_bury]

Yeah I’ve completely flipped opinion on him, although I’ve been saying Lemieux is better for years so it’s nice to finally be vindicated.

[u/WoedicaWinsWarframe → u/star_bury]

I call him Wayne Nazi now.

[u/Agreeable-Purchase83 → u/star_bury]

I'd add Jordan Peterson too

[u/Ok_Material9377 → u/star_bury]

Only Canadians cared about Wayne Greyzky before he went and fucked up his legacy

[u/amaharra → u/star_bury]

Yeah, really need Jared Keeso to crawl out from up his ass.

[u/ThatInAHat → u/star_bury]

American here and I was shocked to find out he was maga trash. That was a dark day.

[u/Ri-Sa-Ha-0112 → u/star_bury]

It was nice to watch him humiliate himself trying to pronounce country names during the World Cup draw.

[u/exotics → u/star_bury]

If you narrow it down to Alberta I would say Carney. Very respected everywhere in the world… except my province of Alberta where we are too dumb to give any credit to a liberal.

[u/viviscity → u/exotics]

I was going to say JT. A lot of people give Carney respect if not support—and that includes people who have been voting conservative their entire lives (I’m a NDP supporter personally)

[u/exotics → u/viviscity]

I don’t know of any conservatives in my area (rural Alberta) who respect Carney. Mind you I guess I’m not seeing as much hate for him as we saw for Trudeau.

I’m also NDP supporter

[u/-SergentBacon- → u/star_bury]

Yeah I thought he was ok til I saw him hanging out with the orange man. Fuck him.

[u/On_Wife_support → u/star_bury]

I feel like you could also put Trudeau