Canada; The Unwanted Step Child

Discussing why Canada is akin to the ugly girl at the prom without a date is almost contradictory in nature. Why discuss something of no relevance? Because I read the article above last week and it is just hilarious. The author, Matt Labash, did a story on the American ex-patriot movement.

I can’t decide on a favorite quote or passage but this is good for starters. In response to Canada paying American universities $300K to study their country “a [Duke] professor in the program has said, ‘We're the most important university to make a serious effort to study Canada. That's like being the best hockey team in Zimbabwe.’”

Another noteworthy part comes towards the end and assuming, most likely correctly that it will difficult to entice anyone to read anything on Canada, I’ll quote some more.

After a brief synopsis of a Canadian book based upon unscientific polling to show why Canada is morally superior, Labash comes up with this.

“I spent three days on Nexis kicking up every comparison-survey and statistic I could find on American/Canadian values. I became so gripped with the subject I could have been mistaken for a Canadian.

“This unscientific research quickly confirmed that Canadians are bizarrely obsessed with us, binge-eating out of our cultural trough, then pretending it tastes bad. Plainly the two things Canada needs most are a mirror and a good psychiatrist.”

A balanced and cogent analysis, then..

Typical... tripe from the most insular and myopic country ever to grace the earth..

Love travelling in the US and tuning the car radio.. all you get is crashingly boring heavy metal stations.. gangsta rapper hip hop shouting about killing Whitey and Crackin Ho's.. or mile after mile of BibleThumping Christian Music and exhortations to send the radio pastor your money before the wrold ends.....

Newscasts are a joke.. The world could be falling into the Sun and whole continents disappearing under the sea and the report would say.. "six Americans killed when Australia disappeared today" - followed by some breathless blonde bimbo interviewing Cameron Diaz on her latest ' water and bubblegum diet '...

At least, from this ' article' you mention.. someone is actually paying attention to us...Just remember you'll be sorry when we cut off the flow of oil, gas. water, movie stars...

Just to make a serious point to all this ' affectionate sniping ' [ and you knew in posting the above comments I couldn't not jump in with a response ] I draw you attention to comments by the, recently deceased, George Kennon, presidential advisor and cold war analyst..[ speaking about Asia, but his comments hold true to current world relations and Canada as well ]

" Our [ America's ] political philosophy and our patterns of living have very little applicability to masses of people in Asia...They may be right for us, with our highly developed political traditions running back to the centuries and with our peculiarly favourable geographic position, but they are simply not practical or helpful, today, for most of the people in Asia...We are deceiving ourselves and others when we pretend to have the answers to the problems which agitate many of these Asiatic peoples...This whole tendency to see ourselves as the center of political enlightenment and as terachers to a great part of the rest of the world strikes me as unthought-through, vainglorious and undesirable."

To him the world were all revealed as more complex, and categorical American judgments and impositions internationally all the more foolish, lethal, self-defeating...

suggest you read some of his works and critiques... might make you less likely to denigrate your neighbours for taking a ' different path ' to the one you trod..

We don't all have to walk in the shade of the US umbrella...

"To see Canadian progressivism in action, though, I trekked down to the East Side, Vancouver's Compton, where the storefront Supervised Injection Site caters to junkies on the government teat. With the surrounding streets hosting an open-air drug market, the Site was conceived as a way to rid the neighborhood of discarded drug paraphernalia and promote "safe" drug-taking practices. In typical Canadian fashion, it's a long way around the barn to get rid of litter."

While Americans are driving around listening to Kill Whitey or whatever Rocket was talking about, I'm sure this bunch of stellar citizens have Mozart and Chopin on their iPods.

And since one citizen's opinion (squishy American lefty G. Kennon) means so much to rocket, we'll throw this in for free.

"Will Ferguson is a cockeyed nationalist and brilliant satirist, who calls his country "a nation of associate professors." In his book Why I Hate Canadians, he writes that his countrymen even boast about their Great Canadian Inferiority Complex. While it's difficult to go five minutes without hearing how collectively nice Canadians are, Ferguson says, "what we fail to realize is that self-conscious niceness is not niceness at all; it is a form of smugness. Is there anything more insufferable than someone saying, 'Gosh, I sure am a sweet person, don'tcha think?'"

Oh, and you are walking in our umbrella shade whether you admit or not.

That was one of my favorite lines, "binge-eating out of our cultural trough, then pretending it tastes bad."

Gentlemen:
You have your pistols,face back to back,walk ten paces ,turn and fire.
IINNCCOOMMMING

I'm not about to apologize for Canada's attitudes toward/against America.. To paraphrase a great Prime Minister, Pierre Trudeau...when the mouse sleeps next to the elephant he beter keep one eye open..

Of course, we'll be walking in the US shadow/umbrella..as the real estate agents say ' location,location,location' ..we are the captors of geography.. That being said, we do not have to walk the same route and don't...

As for Vancouver's flower-power leftovers supporting needle parks, etc.. you're being disengenuous.. that is a minority opinion from a left-leaning enclave which has no more relevance on the country's attitudes than the same bunch of dope smokers that inhabit the remnants of San Francisco or other California aging hippie gated communities...

As for satire by Canuck Comics.. no more ' laughable' than those spouted by such American heavyweight comedians like Jeanne Garafalo and Ellen Degernate, et al..

Agree that , in general, we compare and contrast ourselves to the US model of society..only natural since our commerce and trade and economy travels north-south and has much in the way of integration..We have allowed ourselves to be ' bought ' by American firms and ' influenced' by American [ heheh ] 'Culture '..our fault...it is the basis for great debates...

Still, we have, so far, remained ' independent ' to some extent and can make an assessment of what we like and dislike in the US today... hate ' gun culture ', laud its industrial attitude, hate its ' jingoism ' love its patriotism, praise its charity to others, decry the ' strings' that come with that largesse..appreciate its resolve to step in when the world goes sour, but find its thinking that America has the only solution to be beligerant and wrongheaded...
We'll always be America's friend, but get upset at being put down and ignored by ' big brother ' for thinking on our own..

What frosts me is when the US asks " Do I look fat in these jeans?' and Canada says, honestly, " Yes "..we get trashed for it. Friends don't lie to each other...

Now go and have a Canadian-made, US bottled, beer...

One of the salient points of that article was the preoccupation of Canadians with the comparison between America and their country. Statistically speaking, something like 9 out of 10 of the studies this guy found on Nexis dealing with the comparison were by Canadians. Thus the Canucks having to pay American universities to study their people.

All of this points back to Canada's irrelevance over all. And of course I'm just running this to bug you, and sure enough, you've taken a far more serious tone than normal.

Oh yeah, your health care system is getting ready to break you. Even Sweden has instituted market based reforms so the next time someone has the audacity to suggest the same in Canada; instead of accusing them of "Americanization" simply correct them and say "No, it's Swedenization." You'll still be at the American trough but the semantics will make you feel better.

Won't debate the point that Canadians compare/contrast their development/society against the ' market leader', the US.. hopefully we can find the ' berst' without importing the ' worst '..
Re: healthcare..the system is not at fault, its the way its used..with anything that's ' free 'there are those who overuse and abuse..problem is in the infrastructure..costs are not being met by the collection... and this means fewer healthcare professionals and beds/spaces at hospitals.. Governments are notoriously stingy and don't wantr to let the people see the actual cost of things.. if they let the full price of 'stuff' be seen it would shock the locals and maybe, just maybe most would realize they're ' using 'too much...but, of course, making the people pay the full shot would scare the folks into kicking out those in power..
In the US this cost is passed through private hands so that the nasty HMO's get blamed for ' cutting costs/limiting benefits' or the big corporations get dinged to keep the little guy healthy.. See that GM is complaining that 61% of its labour costs are to cover employee health costs reducing profitability and driving ' foreign ' car makers sales up...

bottom line.. no system ever works the way it looks on paper...

just look at how the ' liberation of Iraq ' played out..[ just to keep it on a ' military forum ' basis ]...

Well fellas. . .it just occured to me. . .we are still allies.

Barely, but I don't hold that against rocket. I was just livening things up a bit.

I hear ya Airwinger. But I'm gonna have to ask why you think "barely?"

The Canadian press and many of their political class have said some pretty damning things since 911. I'm not just referring to off the cuff remarks by non-political entities who happen to have a public voice.

To use Jonah Goldberg's phrase, Canada has internalized U.N.ology.

Jonah Goldberg On Canada

But I'm burying the axe with my next post. Hold a sec.

Soldiers from the 3rd PPCLI [Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry] flew south for the duration of the Fighting 13th’s Training in an Urban Environment (TRUEX) and Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTFEX) exercises March 17-April 3 at Southern California Logistics Airport in Victorville, Calif.

The PPCLI being from Canada of course.

I thought of rocket as soon as I saw this article and had to link it with some excerpts.

Don’t worry rocket, it’s all good.

“This blows our exercises away,” said 2nd Lt. (pronounced “Leftenant”) Matt Dawe, 8th platoon commander, C co, 3rd Bn., “the realism is, for lack of a better term, breathtaking.”

Dawe and the green warriors of the north took part in every event tailored for U.S. Marine combat operations. From Security and Stability Operations (SASO) to Cordon and Knock ops, the soldiers had their boots on the ground and their rifles at the ready.

“The training has been so worthwhile,” said Dawe. “The troops are loving every single minute of it. It’s awe-inspiring.”

VanHorlick and McLaren, both from British Columbia, agreed that the professionalism of the Marines was unparalleled to their experiences with “other” forces at Fort Lewis, Wash., where they conducted urban combat training in the past. After having Marine Devil Dogs embedded in their ranks for the exercise, the two grunts were left with positive impressions.

“We’ve worked with ANGLICO and they’re professional, level-headed and well-trained,” said McLaren. His ‘brother’ echoed the sentiment, adding, “Yeah, (the Marines) are pretty decent compared to the other guys we’ve worked with.”

Even Dawe, their platoon commander, seconded the notion. “You’ve been a lot easier to deal with.”

Read The Story Here

I actually have a friend who belonged to the “other” guys up in Fort Lewis (who are actually deployed to Iraq right now) so I’ll tread lightly here.

The note to take on those comments however is something I was thinking on the other day after posting a few at MilSpot. Unit and branch rivalries are part of our human nature but it takes a little different twist in the Marines.

We, as Marines, honestly believe our methods and spirit to be so superior to anything else that we approach joint maneuvers, wherein the forces are working together, as an opportunity to proselytize. So instead of bogging down in locker-room antics of rivalry we embrace fully as if to say “Come, see how well things can really go.” Even to the point of being extremely willing to pick up new methods from our visitors. Always being on the bottom of the budgetary totem pole, Marines have always had to “adapt and overcome.” This has meant borrowing as much as innovating.

And ANGLICO means something like Air/Naval Gunfire Liaison Company. They’re akin to a Recon company though with a smaller mission profile. They drop or insert them behind enemy lines (or right on the front) to help direct air and naval weaponry and of course as another set of eyes on the ground.

The PPCLI are no slouches in the ' war ' department.. they earned a US Presidential Unit Citation from Dubya for their work in Afghanistan against the Taliban...

Our snipers also received a citation and currently hold the world record for the ' longest kill ' [ again earned in Afghanistan ]

Despite flying antiques our flyboys have taken the best of the US jet jockeys in many a TopGun Exercise..

Our current CDS [ head of the Canadian Forces - Army/Navy/AirForce ] General Hillier was Deputy Commander [ on secondment from Canada ] of the III US Army Corp...

We may have lousy political support and have to use ' vintage ' equipment but our guts and hearts are right where they need to be...

Still, my son, who recently returned from a jointex at Fort Knox sure loved the toys, the attitude, and acceptance he and his troops received from their ' hosts '...

Whatever rants go back and forth from the pundits and politicos, the boys at the pointy end of each force know who their friends are...

Yeah, what disdain I have for Canada as a country, politically speaking, is an entirely different animal than what I feel for fellow fighting men. I've long suspected anyone who bothered to serve in the military, coming out of such a political environnment as Canada's, must feel like aliens at home sometimes. At least on average.

yea

I remember back in the....7th 8th grade my class was forced to watch this canadian video. on it was twoteens, one with canadian shirt on and the other with a u.s. shirt on. (flags), and the whole video consisted of, how the U.S. is ruining and poluting canada. ..... just thought i'd share that.

quote:

Originally posted by Joe:
Well fellas. . .it just occured to me. . .we are still allies.

Served with Brits, Canadians, Aussies. All outstanding people to work with.

Also served with Italians, Pakis, Botswanans, French, Nigerians and Saudis. Not so outstanding.

The Canucks never let us down, never fired on us (that's a big plus-- and I can't say that of all the contries above), but were a bit racist (I was surprised to learn). They also never held anything back, it was all "on the table" whenever we dealt with them. So, they're OK in my book. And that's what matters to me. I could give a crap what their politics are, as long as they back me up when the time comes.