This belief in exceptionalism is not just an American ideal. It is found across the Western world — either that violence in the West is a rare, one-off event that “does not reflect who we are”; or more broadly, that any violence or aggression undertaken within or by white industrialised countries is done in pursuit of “something greater,” while that same violence in other parts of the world represents backwardness, terrorism, or racial inferiority. These debates reminded me of a 2014 controversy in Canadian politics that some of you may remember.