Canada vs Denmark, battle of the Superpowers

[Crazieman]

Going to one of my favorite political toons Filibuster Cartoons, I spotted this comic along with an explanation.

Canada has been invaded by Denmark.

A Danish warship deployed troops to Hans Island, in the northern region of Canada, and stuck their filthy Danish flag in it. Apparently they consider it belongs to them, and not us, a la the Falkland Islands.

The governments are saying this will not be an "international incident" but I am not so sure. Some Canadian politicians are already bemoaning that this is the inevitable result of our practically nonexistent navy.

Read more about the crisis of the century

So Denmark is illegally occupying a Canadian island? Canadian Freepers, whats the deal here?

[danamco]

It starts with their inferior greasy bacon

Who told you that???
You're absolutely wrong. You can not find any leaner bacon on the planet earth. They are exporting ships load to the U.K. and other countries every day for it's superior quality. You should also try taste their butter, it beats any "grease" you ever had in your mouth!

[rock58seg]

OH! OH!! OH!!! Let me guess!!! T. S. Eliot was the cabin boy. Shucks, I thought it was a riddle.

[headsonpikes]

I'll grant you the butter!

However, I've tried Danish bacon, and regard it as distinctly 'greasier' than our Canadian staple.

Make breakfast - not war!

;^)

[rock58seg]

You describe your citizenship, much the same as we do in Texas when a democrat administration is in power here.

[rock58seg]

What he was saying is, that he has been eating sushi while waiting. No need for listerine.

[Agnes Heep]

OH! OH!! OH!!! Let me guess!!! T. S. Eliot was the cabin boy. Shucks, I thought it was a riddle.

He might have been the cabin boy, but in fact he was the author of the poem. Only it was a German warship, not a Danish one, hence the apology.

[Sgt. Holm]

Yes, Denmark has troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Denmark also has a fleet of war ships equipped for the Arctic, and there are Danish naval bases on Greenland.

[Sgt. Holm]

"BREAKING: DENMARK INVADES CANADA"
How about this:
"Denmark Takes Possession of Hans Island; Canada Whines"

Canada's claim to 1.3 sq. km of rock between Greenland and Ellesmere Island is no better than that of Denmark.

[Sgt. Holm]

The following was taken from a link somewhere else on this site:

"Secondly, it has been reported that Greenland Inuit have been crossing over to Baffin Island to engage in illegal polar bear hunts. The Canadian Rangers have been dispatched to Baffin Island but have not caught any of the alleged hunters. If it proves to have been a long-term habit, it is conceivable that the Greenland homeland government could argue that the hunt is an established right"

Well, you know what? This form of hunting IS an established right.
The Inuit on both sides of the Canadian-Greenlandic border have been hunting in these territories for hundreds of years, long before some old white men sitting in an office far away drew a line on a map.
Inuit on the Greenlandic side of the border had close relations to the Inuit on the Canadian side, and the Inuit had no concept of a border - it was all just hunting territories. And the Inuit kept hunting on the old hunting grounds, never imagining that someone in an office far away thought that they were doing something illegal.
In the far Arctic, hunting is the only way to get food and clothing.

Now some tight @ssed bureaucrats in Copenhagen and Ottawa are going to argue over a piece of rock too? Just give Hans Island to Nunavut and the Greenlandic Home Rule to share equally - end of problem.

[Keith in Iowa]

>>...Baffin Island...

My Grandfather was there for a time during WW-II working for a cosntruction company, building the airbase(s)... the ship he was sent up there on got torpedoed... I'd kind of like to see if I could make contact with a historian up there...

[squidly]

There ’s ne’er a villain dwelling in all Denmark, But he ’s an arrant knave.

[The KG9 Kid]

Hysterical. If that island was US property, those Danes would never have tried that stunt.

[Sgt. Holm]

Hmmm - read a bit about the subject elsewhere.
Denmark has been claiming Hans Island for years now. So has Canada. Hans Island has never officially been the territory of any country. Since Denmark actually bothered to come and take possession of the island, that makes it Danish/Greenlandic territory.
The dad of a friend of mine was actually on the Danish ship that went to Hans Island. According to my friend, they had no idea it would make such a fuss to plant the Danish flag there. The Canadians could have done the same thing if they wanted to - they just never did.
I still think that Canada/Nunavut and the Kingdom of Denmark (meaning Denmark including Greenland) should draw the border down the middle of Hans Island.

"If that island was US property...": Well, if that island was Canadian property, the Danes would never have planted the flag either! The point is, until now, it's been no man's land.