Posted on 04/04/2003 5:26:00 PM PST by albertabound
Saturday 5th April, 2003
Canadian rally backs U.S. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Big News Network.com Saturday 5th April, 2003
A freak spring ice storm only slightly dampened the enthusiasm and turnout at a Pro-America rally held in the heart of Canada's financial district Friday.
Some 2,000 shivering and chanting people draped in Canadian and U.S. flags milled in front of Toronto's City Hall in a show of support for the U.S.-led coalition's war against Iraq.
The organizers of the rally, Friends of America, told the crowd they were part of the silent majority of Canadians who support the United States and the war. Various speakers evoked cheers saying Prime Minister Jean Chretien's Liberal government does not reflect national sentiment.
One Liberal Member of Parliament was soundly booed during her explanation of how Canada and the United States could remain on friendly terms without fighting a war together. When she began speaking in French -- Canada's second official language -- the catcalls became obscene.
The most prominent speaker at the rally was Ontario Premier Ernie Eves, a conservative who has been very vocal in denouncing Canada's decision not to participate in the war.
Friendship is a commitment, Eves said Friendship is not a commitment just for good times -- friendship is a commitment to be there when times are difficult and times are tough. ... We should be standing by our American friends now.
Those attending varied in age from late 20s to seniors, with numerous Canadian war veterans wearing their dress blazers with berets and medals. There were no parents with young children to be seen.
Among the mass-produced and hand-fashioned banners were messages such as Chretien resign, Give war a chance, and Chretien doesn't speak for me.
Since the United States, Britain and Australia in the region sent troops into Iraq on March 20, there have been small but widespread rallies across Canada, all of which had a dual focus: support for Canada's biggest trading partner and ally, and disdain for the government's decision not to send troops into action. Last weekend, more than 5,000 gathered at Parliament Hill in Ottawa to wave U.S. flags and decry the government's position.
Chretien waffled repeatedly on whether Canada would participate until the war began, citing a lack of a formal resolution by the United Nations. And this week, Liberal members of Parliament introduced a motion reaffirming Canada's stand that Washington should have had U.N. backing before going to war. Observers said the motion was likely to pass.
Meanwhile, nearly 1,000 Canadian soldiers remain deployed in Afghanistan in active combat roles.
The Toronto rally was peaceful, although a heavy contingent of police was present. Some 50 anti-war protesters arrived with posters and masks of President George Bush. They were surrounded by police, presumably to avoid any physical confrontations. Eight officers on horseback also stood at the ready nearby.
Friends of America was founded only nine days ago by about a dozen Canadians dismayed by the consequences of Canada's inaction. Among them is Raymond Heard, a communications consultant who served as communications director for Prime Minister John Turner -- a Liberal.
We (supporters) are the majority in Canada and we're proud of it, Heard said. We hope and we pray that the Americans win this war quickly.
Much was made by speakers at the rally about remarks made by a Liberal member of Parliament who didn't realize she was being quoted by reporters last month. As the Bush administration was seeking support for the war effort, Caroline Parrish uttered that she hated those bastards.
A gray-haired woman sporting the flags of both countries from her lapels, Lois Nealy said she braved the weather out of disgust at those remarks by an elected official.
It's pure racism, she told UPI. We couldn't say 'We hate the Jews' -- we couldn't say 'They're all bastards.' But we can say it to Americans? That's not right. They're our best friends.
As she spoke, a boisterous trio of men walked by stretching a banner that read Regime change in Baghdad and Ottawa.
Saddam Hussein appeared on Iraq TV and toured Baghdad streets Friday, in the first indications the Iraqi President is alive.
the book is about US folks in CDN uniform & CDNs in US uniform;the first cross border warriors came south in the French & Indian War!
BTW, the 10th LA was nearly all from Canada;the south had NO BETTER fighters for southern liberty!
free dixie,sw
I've been a guest of Free Dominion and I know the Canadian passion for freedom and the spirit that drives them.
While my suggestion seems harsh, it is meant for the best.
I will always remember the way stranded Americans were treated by Canadians after 9/11, when all the air traffic was brought to a standstill.
Many Canadians from the Maritime provinces opened their homes and towns to host weary passengers, and many Western Canadians took time off from their jobs to drive elderly stranded Americans back to the US, since the elderly lacked the stamina for the long drive.
Harsh maybe, but also correct.
I am not so sure we won't have a serious falling out over this, it wasn't so much that Canada wouldn't join the coalition, lets face it, we don't have a military anymore, but the anti American slurs were unbelievable, and mostly from Liberal politicians.
We are flying the US flag, and have pro US stickers on our car, we are seeing more and more of that.
The up-side to this is, I think the population here are finally waking up to what this government represents.
Hey, we have plenty of American politicians slurring America, not to mention media whores and Hollywood slime and academic trolls. Everyone expects your weird Canadian specimens to drool at the mouth, nothing new there. You don't have Hollywood but you do have Quebec, so we're even. The decent -- dare I say normal? -- people in both countries are the same as always, and friends.
The ice storm really put a damper on things, didn't it.
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