O Canada

The American Thinker ^ | Dec. 1, 2004 | Thomas Lifson

[Kitten Festival]

All my life I have been an American friend of Canada. As a child, I knew that one branch of my family had fled European tyranny and persecution and found shelter north of the border, where they had prospered and enjoyed the blessings of liberty, tolerance, and a free economy. Visiting relatives confirmed that Canada was a good country, full of mostly good and kind people. Our cousins of the flesh were surrounded by a people who were our cousins of the spirit.

Family trips to Canada confirmed that it was indeed almost indistinguishable from home. The coins were made of sterling silver, the Sunday paper was published on Saturday (because everything closed down on Sunday), and they had a lot of trolley busses. But aside from the mental gymnastics of converting an “Imperial gallon” into an American gallon, and then calculating the price of gasoline into American dollars (worth less than Canadian dollars back in the 1950s), life for us foreigners was pretty uncomplicated. In Ontario, where we visited, the signs were all in English, and French Canada was remote and given little thought.

Canada’s national identity has always been based on the fact of their being not American.

[Kitten Festival]

An exceptionally elegant essay on the nature of Canada in the wake of President Bush's successful trip there. Why we love Canadians, and why they sometimes infuriate us. Good geographical breakdown key to sorting them out. A must read.

[drtom]

An excellent article indeed. Thanks for posting it.