Annoying Canadians
Dean
Urgh. Well, I seem to have touched a nerve with my note yesterday about Carolyn Parrish and my rather offhand comment about a "personal boycott" of Canada. I certainly didn't mean that in the literal sense, and I certainly wasn't encouraging others. It's just that my wife and I don't visit Windsor in Canada anymore, because we got our feelings hurt. I didn't literally mean we don't talk to Canadians or buy any Canadian products. It's just that the allure of visiting Canada is gone.
And it wasn't just because of nasties like Parrish. It was from a whole year of debate wherein we saw much nastiness in the Canadian press as well as from the Canadian government, and what looked (from here) like a few decent Canadians and a lot of really mean Canadians who seemed to not just think "no, we don't want to be part of the operation to liberate Iraq from a mass murdering tyrant because we don't think that's in our best interests," but rather, "America is evil."
It's just what it looked like from here, gang.
Obviously I still have Canadian friends, and I still have a number of Canadians on my blogroll. I also tend to forget everyone doesn't read and remember every single thing I've ever written, so folks probably don't remember that I wrote Thankful for Canada back in 2002, and a slightly snarkier piece called Hey Canada, Don't Make Us Kick Your Ass, Okay? which was humorous but in which I said all kinds of nice things about Canada. Still. Perhaps more Canadians ought to hear that they hurt a lot of Americans' feelings as a nation. If it surprises you, well, okay, but it's true. Last year, in this discussion of Bali, my late friend Gary Utter spoke for a lot of us (the discussion turned to Canada even though it was about Bali. Go figure.) So, for you and you and you and you and you and you and you and any other Canadians wondering, no I'm not literally "boycotting Canada." But there's this whole "we thought they had our backs but they spit on us instead" feeling some of us still have, and visiting the place just doesn't seem worth it anymore. Parrish just kind of reopened those feelings for me. [shrug]
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It seems as if all the pent up frustration and animosity Canadaiens have had towards us has now just been brought out in the open. Lefty politicians seem to be playing on that feeling and have met with some success using it to further their electoral aims.
I can remember 1981 when it came out that Canada had bravely helped us during the Iranian hostage crisis by hiding some Americans and eventually helping them to escape. There seemed to be at that time a real bond between the two countries. Of course, it didn't hurt that Brian Mulroney was PM and that he was a great admirer of Reagan.
Something's happened over the last twenty years. It'd be interesting if someone traced what went bad.
Maybe my comment doesn't add a whole lot to yours Dean, but I still wanted to say "thanks, Flea".
and these countries call us stupid!
I will say that I hope one day you will once again consider Canada a friendly place to visit, whatever needs to happen to accomplish that. And when that day comes, we'll meet in Windsor (I've never been there myself) and I'll buy you a pepsi. Deal?
As for the Toronto Sun: isn't that kind of a lowbrow tabloid?
Still, at least it's there. My understanding of Canadian politics is that Torontos pretty much the center of power for Paul Martin's Liberal Party. Or at least one of the big ones.
Just two days ago, my wife and I were food shopping. I forced her to put back an entire bag of tomatoes, because each tomato was labeled "Product of Canada".
FYI, we do the same thing for the French and Germans. Give me an alternative, and I won't buy anything from you blighters.
Quit apologizing and join Americans who've had it with our gonad-fee neighbors to the north.
F' the lot of you.
I remember a smiliar argument applied to Bosnia. "You Americans aren't sending troops because there isn't oil there."
It's amazing how things have changed in less than 10 years. Now we are derided for our "imperialism".
I have learned that foreigners - especially those from the Anglosphere - really don't understand America. Not the America of Hollywood or the NY Times, but the average America that really doesn't make much noise or gather much press.
I come from that America, and I am amazed at how the people there really feel stabbed in the back by Canada and our "allies" in Europe. What the people from those nations do not understand is that Americans won't forget.
Things will change.
America will be called on to intervene again - whether its to prevent sectarian violence in France, or some other 3rd World S**thole that has grabbed the world's media attention, and Americans will say, "Sorry, but no."
Roots of a virulent strain of isolationism are being set deeply into the ground by the actions of our so-called "friends". After 9-11 was the time to put up or shut-up, and our "friends" did neither.
People in the heartland won't forget this. And Canadians might want to consider that the next time they decide to spout off.
Scott: That's the thing about America that makes it such a wonderful place to be.
We rarely say "no" when people are in trouble.
scott said...
America will be called on to intervene again - whether its to prevent sectarian violence in France, or some other 3rd World S**thole that has grabbed the world's media attention, and Americans will say, "Sorry, but no."
I hope you're right scott. I don't like the fact that so many Americans have died for other countries freedom. It would be nice if someone else had the balls to step up for once. The UN, France, Germany, Canada are a bunch of freeloaders. And the US govt needs to stop playing so nice with these insects.
I probably would not make a very good diplomat.
lol
You don't realize how strong the isolationism is getting in the country. It's below the radar now beause its at the grassroots level.
Many on the Right mistake the public support for the war in Iraq as support for American internationalism. It's not. Many Americans are convinced that it's in America's long-term interest, and will sacrifice their children to make America safer.
But beyond blatant American self interest? You are forgetting what it took to get Americans involved in WW2. So are the Europeans.
Europe (and Canada) is playing with fire, and will eventually become the battleground between radical Islam and secularism. Once it does, I do not see American support to back our European allies again.
There's too many burned bridges. Too many backstabs. Too much distrust.
Europe will be on its own.
Now you see why I wasn't selected by the Foreign Service even though I passed the written exam! ;p
This Minnesotan still hasn't forgotten the incredibly unfair fishing rules Canada put in place in the late 90s in a bald attempt to drive US-based resorts in the Northwest Angle out of business. I haven't knowingly consumed a Canadian product since then.