The Americans would come up here take all our resources for themselves and leave us nothing. We are a nation not to be absorbed into the states! We maybe similar to Americans but that does not make us Americans. We have our own culture and ways. Canadians the world over are loved and respected. Americans are basically hated. Do we want to become targets for terroists? Do we want our sons and daughters dying for American wars? NO! We might be overshadowed like Greg said, but those other nations don't want to be absorbed by their bigger more powerful nations anymore than we do.

Take all the resources. How ridiculous.

Maddie dear, I love you dearly but what you are spouting is garbage. Common garbage but still garbage. The US can BUY any resources it wants or needs from Canada. Indeed it already does. Closer ties would not and have not changed this. NAFTA didn't turn Canada into a waterless, timberless desert (as so many predicted it would) and neither would closer ties.

As to international attitudes, Canadians are loved and "respected" because they are seen as totally harmless and irrelevant. On the global stage, Canada is, quite simply, not very important. Hardly surprising for a country with about the population of greater New York City.

Superpowers and their citizens are always going to be hated feared and targeted by morons. Your statements about Canada and terrorism are humourous because they so closely mirror those computer users who prefer Macs and crow about their "superiority" because they are "immune" to viruses. Like the Mac users, Canada is immune not due to a "real" reason but due to obscurity. It's simply not an important enough target and, in addition, has shown in the past that it is more likely to "roll over" politically when threatened (in all save military actions - Canada's military is superb despite the government's mistreatment of it).

I suggest you study Sharia and Islam a bit. Were Canada more significant it's very liberal laws and attitudes would surely make it a target of fundamentalist terrorism. Indeed, culturally it is more dangerous to Islam than the (rather conservative) US. It's just not important enough to bother with because it simply has no ability to project force either politically or economically. That's not a slam, just a statement of fact. Canada just isn't big enough. It's excellent standard of living and economy makes it a player on the level of many countries with several times the population, but it's still very low on the global totem pole.

I just read an article in McClean's magazine today on a poll that was conducted on how Canadians and Americans feel about each other. Basically it stated that relations between our two countries are at an all time low and that Canadians are becoming more intorlerant of the states and Americans. We are glad that we did not join in the Iraq war. Most Canadians think Americans are arrogant and that in part America's foreign policies helped to bring on 9/11.

How nice - the sponsors of the "cultural mosaic" are anti American bigots. Mind you, I know that from a great deal of personal experience being an American who has lived in Canada half his life. You have no idea how many times I've been at a party and as an "invisible minority" had to listen to "how awful all Americans are etc. etc." And they sure do look sheepish when, after giving them enough rope to hang themselves ten times over I thank them for spending the last half an hour personally insulting me. Bigots.

I hope we never become part of the states. How right wing and religious the states is becoming is just scary, I want no part of it.

Many Americans want no part of it either. Don't let the (loud) religious right fool you. There are a lot of them and a lot of other people. And there are right wing religious nuts in Canada too - particularly in the west. A lot of them.

Thank you for insulting my home nation and all people with whom I share my citizenship. "Cultural Mosaic" indeed.


Silver Warder

Warder to Rebelaessedai

Risk everything - or gain nothing.
Geoffrey de Charney - 1356

Deeds - Not words

Remembering Joe (CrazedWeasel)