Canada Confused About Its Head of State (Who Is It?...)
 

OK, this can't be good. Why are things so weird lately? Maybe we Canadians don't even HAVE a head of state. If it's the Queen, can we send her letters like we would to our MP's or PM's, i.e. public representatives? No. (What's a... viceroy?) If it's Michaëlle Jean, great! At least she lives in Canada and seems approachable, not like that Stephen Harper chap. Maybe we're all just hanging out, y'know, chillin' ... not sure...

Can you imagine this alien scenario: Take me to your leader!

A hot debate about head of state

And yesterday, when the Governor-General's new website was unveiled, separate pages described both the Queen and the Governor-General as head of state. A constitutional dispute between GG and PM?

“No, no, no, not at all,” said Ms. Jean's spokesman, Marthe Blouin. “We're saying the same thing. The Governor-General knows very well that the Queen is the head of state.”

“As the representative of the Crown in Canada, the Governor-General carries out the duties of the head of state, and therefore is de facto head of state.”

But “de facto head of state” is a murky phrase and, to some, a slippery slope.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1319683/