Posted on 11/24/2017 6:05:47 PM PST by mkleesma
It's been over a year since the American election and what we hear in Canada coming from our old neighbour to the South is a thrum of discontent, not really about any single issue (they change so fast), more like baleful glaring across a great divide on everything.
Some days, we read news from the United States and congratulate ourselves on our tolerance and inclusiveness, on our Prime Minister's socks, on our acting in a way that the States doesn't seem to know how to do.
But mostly, it feels as if we've lost something that we didn't know we liked. We miss the American patriotism that seemed to rise above whatever Americans argued about. We miss the stature the U.S. President had around the world, an ability that crossed party lines to respond with dignity when bad things happened. Now, disagreements in the United States seem intractable, personal and political in the worst ways, it's not just politicians hurling rhetoric, even late-night comedians have lost their sense of humour.
Recently, my husband, Andrew, and I were in Florida. We noticed during friendly idle chats in line at Starbucks or in hotel elevators that mentioning we were Canadian prompted a sheepish grin and a comment such as, "Canada, yeah, it's a good place … especially now." The last two words were often a sigh. We'd feel awkward, wanting to say the right thing, to make them feel better.
But in division there are two sides. We knew that other Americans we bumped into thought differently about our nationality, maybe even pitying us for our health-care system with our hospital patients apparently lined up out the door.
(Excerpt) Read more at theglobeandmail.com ...
I’ve met plenty of idiot Canadians. They’re not limited to Toronto, they’re also all over the east coast.
Most Albertans I talk to are looking to become the 51st state.
Wish I hadn’t read that. I wanted to leave comments on the article but am finding it impossible to create an account.
Anyway, STFU you Canadian moron. Your Trump Derangement Syndrome is showing. Of course you hate him, of course you think your leader’s socks are wonderful.
You know NOTHING about Trumpsters nor Americans except whatever stereotypes exist in your own small mind.
When a jackass is surprised by the kind actions of a Conservative that means the jackass has no idea what they’re talking about so they should seriously S-T-F-U.
My Dad, a native Missourian, has traveled many times through BC on his way to Alaska. He takes his time and has quite a few regular stops. He has made many friends on the Western side of Canada. He says they are a lot like the self reliant conservatives in the American midwest, and as you say, some would like to join the US and get away from the socialism of eastern Canada.
Out west here, we have the resources, the scenery, the know how. The east just takes and gives nothing. The east just continually looks for ways to take our freedoms. We need change very soon.
From down in Texas, I can relate. If Hillary had managed to get her deluxe sized posterior into the White House, we’d be in a whole different place right now and probably thinking things very similar to what you are.
Of course Trump supporters provide jump starts to strangers. I did so about two weeks ago, and was told I was "a lifesaver." I had no knowledge of or interest in the politics of the guy whose car I jump started.
By and large, eh? I think a few years ago, I saw that JimRob had posted some demographic information about where everyone was from who posted on FR… there are a actually quite a few Canadians posting here. Do you find them to be 'insufferably smug' too? Regardless, here is the electoral map for liberal Ontario for the last election…. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario_general_election,_2014#/media/File:Ontario_Provincial_Election_2014_Riding_Results_Map.svg Forget the brown colour of Northern Ontario…. few people live there. Just take a look at Southern Ontario and note that blue is Conservative and red is Liberal (opposite colours to what the U.S. uses.) You will see that the Greater Toronto Area is solid red as is an area just to the east of Toronto plus Ottawa. The rest of the Province is almost solid blue. This distribution was enough to put the Liberals in with a majority. So… even liberal Ontario is not that much different than what the U.S. looks like (with the colours reversed)….big cities end up voting liberal while the wide open rural areas vote conservative. By and large? I suppose one can just as easily come to that conclusion and description about America too if they do nothing but visit some flea bitten hole full of Hillary voters and get their ‘news’ only from CNN, the NYT and the WP….
It’s my experience & opinion...take it or leave it.
Living at the Ontario/Michigan border across from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, I cross frequently. My world of Norman Rockwell's delightful creations lives on there. We twin city residents absolutely know how to mind our manners. This when we go over "the ditch". Americans always seem quiet and laid back when they visit us.
Excuse the rant.
It’s not just the current leader, it’s decades upon decades of the same garbage. Remember, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. People always think they’ll fix it in the next election. It never works out with our system. The system is fixed to favour Ontario and Quebec.
Recently crossed the border into Canada. The immigration official noticed my Texas license plates and said, “you are from Texas, where are your guns.” My reply was, “Montana sir.” They really were, I left them with a gun dealer, for a small sum of money and he stored them until I returned.
Spent a couple of weeks in Canada. I have no complaints about the way the people treated us. However, I think they are fools.
They have a lot of small local breweries that turn out first class ales. The food was also good and the scenery most stunning.
I hope they survive as a free nation given their penchant for political correctness. I hope we survive also.
If all Canadians are this pretentious, can’t we just ban them from the US? Do we truly need their tourist money that badly?
At least the Canadian officials understand Texans:)
Sounds like Jean is about 10 years old.
Ethnically and culturally the people in Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan (BC to a lesser degree) are so much like their counterparts in the nearest states as to form a political entity with their neighbor if Canada ever broke up. If that happened, Ontario would remain as Canada along with the territories, while Quebec would become French Canada and annex New Brunswick as her natural market.
However, the Atlantic provinces, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and PEI would be such economic basket cases without transfer payments, they might have to try becoming a state or states. It is not a sure thing the US would care to adopt them, though.
Well, Canadians are Americans too.
In Europe we certainly are. Canadians who wear the Maple Leaf on their backpacks so as not to be mistakes for Americans are dismayed to find that Euros think they’re all North Americans and Americans are no different from Canadians.
Sad. Sounds like you all in the West don’t have good representation. I don’t know too much about the Canadian system of government, but I have heard that is the case. There has to be a way for lesser populated areas to have the same level of representation as denser areas, at least on some level. Here, we do that with 2 Senators from every State and with the Electoral College during elections. Liberals have belly ached to no end about the EC during the last election, but I thank God for it because otherwise CA and NY would have elected Hillary. Our Founding Fathers were no fools.
They are, what continent do they live on? What are Euros?
I mean showing a Canadian flag won’t differentiate you from the ugly Americans because Europeans think American and Canadian is a distinction without a difference.
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