Darn Canadian borders 8/18/06

[Fresnor]

Oh yeah, somebody with her better make sure she gets the traditional Birthday Spankings too 

[fesworks]

I'm sure that since Bush's Dictatorship here in America, that Approximately 500,000 Americans because Canadians.. (Its was about 200,000 right before Bush's FIRST election to office, aka his second term... and the Canadians issued a statement that Americans can;t just go up there... that they need to apply for tons of stuff, etc.)

So maybe they are trying to really limit Americans that come it. Hell We stopped the British invading for a while... And the Canadians are trying to stop the American invasion

[xHaZxMaTx]

I hope this won't be a problem when I take the train up into Canada.

[Rafe]

I'm sure that since Bush's Dictatorship here in America, that Approximately 500,000 Americans because Canadians.. (Its was about 200,000 right before Bush's FIRST election to office, aka his second term... and the Canadians issued a statement that Americans can;t just go up there... that they need to apply for tons of stuff, etc.)

So maybe they are trying to really limit Americans that come it. Hell We stopped the British invading for a while... And the Canadians are trying to stop the American invasion

First of all, for the last ten years, total immigration to Canada has been fairly steady at around 200,000 to 250,000 per year, about 68% from Asia, 15% from Europe, and 9% from Africa.  The number from the U.S. has never been more than 6,000 at any time in the last ten years.  That's about 2.7%.    On the other hand people immigrating from Canada to the U.S. over the last ten years has been between 15,000 and 20,000 per year, about three times that going the other way.  This is pretty amazing, considering Canada's population is only about 1/10th that of the U.S.  So apparently, the average Canadian is 30 times more likely to want to come to the U.S. than the other way around.

I live in a border state, and I have realtives both in the U.S. and Canada.  My sister actually has dual citizenship.  Knowing what I know first hand, "free" health care is anything but free, it's a LOT more expensive than insurance in the U.S. (Just check the Federal and Provincial taxes they take out).  And sure, you can get drugs cheap, but try to get elective surgery and you end up one a waiting list for a year and a half.  People from the US go north to fill their prescriptions, but the hospitals around here are full of Canadians who can't get the tests or operations they need from the system up there.

And for God's sake.  Bush was elected, twice.  If the U.S. wanted someone else as President, they would have elected Kerry two years ago instead of electing Bush with an even higher percentage.  Get over it.

[Aridas]

That excludes all the people who are more educated and know a mistake when they see it.

[Damaris]

Bush was installed by the Supreme Court the first time, and then narrowly was elected president the second.  For a war-time president, that's pretty sad, because they usually win by a landslide.  For a war-time president, he won by the skin of his teeth.

[Aridas]

Possibly meaning that he wouldn't have stood a chance.

[Manawolf]

The fact that the problems in the middle east hardly constitute a full blown war and people in Florida really messed up with voting may also make play a roll.

Anyway, enough of Bush.  He dumb, get over it, and get back on topic.

[Rafe]

Bush was installed by the Supreme Court the first time, and then narrowly was elected president the second.  For a war-time president, that's pretty sad, because they usually win by a landslide.  For a war-time president, he won by the skin of his teeth.

Bush won because he won Florida's electoral votes.  The Supreme court case only said that Florida couldn't change it's own recount rules.  When others (notably the New York Times) sponsored unofficial recounts using those methods, Bush won by an even larger margin - twice.  And I'm not sure where you get you information, but only one U.S. war-time president ever won by a landslide, Roosevelt during WW II.  Lincoln had a repectable 4% in 1864, not exactly a landslide.   The rest either won by very small margins (Madison by 0.4 % in 1812), or LOST - like Truman during Korea in 1952, or were so unpopular they didn't even run, like Johnson during Vietnam in 1968.    Wilson had debilitating health problems at the end of WW I and probably couldn't have run anyway, but was so unpopular that the Republican, Harding, won in a landslide - with 68% of the popular vote.

I'm not trying to start anything here.  You guys are all my friends and I wouldn't offend you for anything.   It's just that I hate to see people get warped ideas from politicians and revisionists when you can easily look this stuff up.  Plus I just really like to argue.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Thanks, Rafe - that's all useful information to know.

Not to mention surprising, given the way the media (on both sides) like to play it.

[Reese Tora]

The media playes everything sensationalist, it's one failing of thiers. (among others >_> )

Not something I want to get into and (further) hijack the thread with, though.

[Wolphin]

I'm sure that since Bush's Dictatorship here in America, that Approximately 500,000 Americans because Canadians.. (Its was about 200,000 right before Bush's FIRST election to office, aka his second term... and the Canadians issued a statement that Americans can;t just go up there... that they need to apply for tons of stuff, etc.)

So maybe they are trying to really limit Americans that come it. Hell We stopped the British invading for a while... And the Canadians are trying to stop the American invasion

If us Canadians want to stop an invasion, we can (Look up the war of 1812 - you'll have trouble finding even a reference in a US textbook).  Canada is the *ONLY* country that has never been beaten in war, as we pick and choose what wars we want to have, then go all out.

Canadians not only stopped the invasion with no losses, and very few injuries, we pushed you back past where the white house stands and set it on fire.  They repainted it white and called it the white house.

[Rafe]

If us Canadians want to stop an invasion, we can (Look up the war of 1812 - you'll have trouble finding even a reference in a US textbook).  Canada is the *ONLY* country that has never been beaten in war, as we pick and choose what wars we want to have, then go all out.

Canadians not only stopped the invasion with no losses, and very few injuries, we pushed you back past where the white house stands and set it on fire.  They repainted it white and called it the white house.

Allow me to speak as Professor Rafe for a moment:

That's pretty much accurate, but, at least in my part of the U.S., the War of 1812 is a major subject.  In fact, the school I graduated from, Tippecanoe High School, was named after one of the battles of that war.  And yes, Washington D.C. was attacked and the Whitehouse burned, but so was Toronto.  And even though the politicians in Washington left in a hurry, when the same British force went north to Baltimore, the citizens there put up a fight and forced them out of Chesapeake Bay.  Almost everyone knows that story, it was written into a poem by Francis Scott Key called The Star Spangled Banner.

I'd call it more of a draw, overall.  The U.S. got what it wanted in the first place, the end of interference with its trade with France and elsewhere.  It also got control of Maine, Michigan, the Great Lakes, and Washington State, and removed British influence from the entire Mississippi Valley, but didn't get the rest of Canada. 

As far as having "no losses and few injuries", I suppose it depends on which part of the war you're talking about.  In the battle of New Orleans, there were more than 2000 casualties on the British side (and only 71 U.S.).  Strangely enough, this occurred after the Treaty of Ghent ending the war had been signed, but it took over six weeks for word to get across the Atlantic. 

Lots of interesting things going on back then around the time of the Napoleonic Wars.  Fun stuff to read.

[Netami]

Golly, I wanna be just like Canada when I grow up.

[Azlan]

The Battle of Dunkirk comes to mind...

Heated national pride aside, Canada has always been an anchor of stability in North America.  The reasonable, semi-neutral and fatherly seeming nation in most conflicts in fairly recent history.  Canada has always been slow to act, appearing conservative or cautious, but in actuality their maneuvering are largely due to their desire to retain a positive and neutral world image.  Canada is far too worried that they might take action and end up on the unfavorable or unpopular side of conflict (unlike the United States or United Kingdom which always move forward with whatever they believe right... mostly, exceptions exist of course).

The United States seems to think, and a good deal of NATO and the U.S.'s allies as well, that it is the Police force of the world.  The United States takes action when no one else will, or in many cases when it really has no business doing so, whereas Canada stands back and acts as the wise adviser and critic.

Canada is a cloistered country, protected on all sides by the United States, giving it the ability to sit back and judge the actions of others when it takes little of its own.  Despite that opinion, Canada is a valuable nation at the negotiation table, seen as impartial and stable.

All in all, Canada has a valuable and well established place in the world, it is a valuable anchor nation in world politics.

[Zedd]

Hmmm..What about Michigan? canadas little brother?

[fesworks]

What about Michigan? and how is it Canada's younger brother?

[Zedd]

Well some people from michigan where former seltters from cananda

[Aridas]

What does it really matter what point in the world some people came from in determining something like that?

[Zedd]

*somewhere in the world a moose explodes*