A reporter poses as an American tourist in Toronto, and uncovers the “ugly Canadian”.
First, I approached John, sitting on a stoop smoking, a Toronto hat on his head. I asked for a lighter, introduced myself and said I’d noticed anti-Americanism in Toronto. He asked if I was a Republican and I said I was. Then John asked, “Are you a fundamentalist of some kind?”
“This is Kensington Market,” he added. “It’s about the worst place for fellow right- wingers.” After I thanked him for his time and started walking away, he instructed, “Reconsider your views.”
Ummmmm…lets give Barbara credit until we see how her system will work as far as the name calling goes.Lets see,according to her first post,we are anti-Canadian for speaking out against the current situation here.So,Barbara,you are against free speech,the cornerstone of democracy. Strike 1.
Caring about your country makes one a super conservative.I think Candace has answered that quite nicely. Strike 2.
Hateful rednecks. Well,gollygee,Mom,she called me hateful for not likin’ ta fact dem der Libs is plumb stealin our hog money,are runnin’ dis here cuntry illegal,,er ilegall,err,unlawfully, and not preciatin’ jus how fine dey is makin tis place.And if you go here…http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redneck#Historical_usages…I will say I am DAMN PROUD to be called a redneck.At least we stand for something.
Strike 3…Barbara,you are out,waayyyyy out in left field.
Per Ardua Ad Astra
Barbara, thank you for saying that you’re not against the American people per se, although you say you’re not happy with the American Christian right.
If you don’t mind me mentioning it, I would like to point out something that is not discussed a great deal.
If you will notice, Americans trade back and forth between Republican and Democrat presidents fairly often. Right now we have a Republican president for 2 terms — before that we had a Democrate for 2 terms. Had Clinton not gotten mixed up in sex scandals and trying to fix a civil rights trial, Republicans would have grumbled but basically would have accepted his presidency.
This is simply to say that because of the frequency with which the right and left change, Americans all have family who disagree with their political point of view. People fight about it in the arena of ideas, but then most of the time we all sit down together at Thanksgiving and Christmas and relate to each other in our private lives.
Because of this, media support for our 2 different political directions has risen to represent this reality.
It appears that Canada has had only one party now for quite some time. And Canadian media only exists in support of this one political direction. As a consequence, Fox News had a devil of a time getting into the market in Canada, and I gather to this day is not part of the major broadcast media.
Frankly, Canada simply does not get 2 sides of the issues. It would be very interesting to see what would happen should the Canadian right get as much favorable air time as does the Canadian left. The problem is that Canadians often see themselves as having a more complete and comprehensive view of the issues. However in as much as there is no real balance in the Canadian media, the truth is that Canada has very little exposure to a more complete picture.
Although I could say a lot about issues in connection with the American Christian right, I will simply suggest taking a look at a book on the philosophy of religion sometime.
Barbara
What is a “redneck”: a redneck is someone who has their own opinion of things and is willing to espouse them, but is also willing to listen to someone else’s opinions.
I am a Calgarian first, an Albertan second, and a Western Canadian third. And I stress the Western.
I have lived and worked in every province in canada and can say the only place I was glad to leave was ontario. When ontarians found out where I was from I was s**t. It’s your loss.
Rather than Alberta separating from Canada I would suggest that a referendum be taken to kick ontario out of Confederation,and take all them stealing,lying Liberals with you.
Only then will we have a country to be proud of!
Rick, you are so right. Life would be much better. Unfortunately, the Clarity Act only covers those provinces wanting to LEAVE, not those wanting ANOTHER province to leave. Which is too damn bad, isn’t it?
I am an American. I have been living in Canada for 8 years, and will become a Dual Citizen.
Everyday, I hear Anti-American comments. Because I’m also gay, people think I’m a bleeding heart liberal. Not in this lifetime!
The day after Sept 11th, a client came into my veterinary hospital and tried to tell me America needed to rethink her foreign policy and the USA was totally to blame for the attacks.
The next month, I was on the ground at Ground Zero less than one block from the pile working at the veterinary MASH unit on the cadaver dogs that got sick or injured. Everytime a crane lifted some twisted girders, the fires would flare up again. The air was so thick you could feel grit on your teeth if you took the respirator off for even a moment. I had to take it off sometimes, to ask questions and give instructions to the dog handlers.
It was devastating to be there, but I had to be there. It was something I could do – that mattered. I’m sure it made my position of support for the USA apparent to my clients and friends here. Now I’m suffering through smog days in Ontario due to a bit of lingering World Trade Center cough.
If the CN Tower in Toronto had been hit, Joe Liberal Canadian would have a whole ‘nother prespective for sure.
And another thing:
When an American speaks about policy in Canada – Liberal Canadians all jump up and down and speak of sovereignty and the USA needs to mind their own damned business. Yet, Liberal and NDP Canadians routinely criticise US government policy as if they have a right to, and actually try to influence government decisions in the US with no thought that it’s none of their business.
Kyla, you have to forgive most of the ignoramuses you meet in Canada. We/They are products of Trudeau’s Canada, where being smug and self-righteous are considered virtues, and living off the avails of other people’s hard work is an entitlement. Most of us on this site feel as you do, believe me. But there are a few lost souls who find their way here, with the predictable results. Still, it makes the rest of us more convinced than ever, that there is a lot of work to be done, and damage to undo. I’m willing to bet that of all these poxy Live8 concerts, it will be Canada that spews the most holier-than-thou, greater-than-great, we’re-better-than-the-rest-a-ya shit. It’s what defines Canadians even more than our dysfunctional government and healthcare system. It’s a massive, collective inferiority complex.
SUNDAY SPECTATOR
June 26, 2005
Letter to Quebec
I wonder if anyone is home in Quebec? For a long time, if any were, I have wanted to write them a letter. Today, I’ve decided to just write it, and see if I get a response. It will be in English. Letters from English Canada are often in that language.
Let me begin by telling you what I don’t want to say. I don’t want to say, “I wuv you.” Especially, visitors from Ontario have been telling you this, whenever they’ve felt you were getting uppity. They are like the unfortunate husband, who does not realize that his wife hates him. Imagine his surprise when she suddenly moves out. (Except, in Canada, wives don’t move out. They have their husbands moved.)
I am speaking to you from a province that truly doesn’t get it. We don’t get that you’ve had enough. We don’t get the degree to which you are tired, not only of the corruption, but of the sheer malice of the Liberal Party. They are getting about equally tired in the West. And according to the polls, we, in Ontario, have decided the Liberal Party must stay, for reasons of “national unity”. In other words, the Liberals have become the separatist party of Ontario.
davidwarrenonline.com
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>.
“…Liberals have become the separatist party of Ontario.”
At long last someone dares to say it: the end of Canada as we knew it.
The future awaits. Seize the initiative, westerners. Build your future now.
Up with Alberta. Seize the moment, Alberta.
From the church bulletin:
“Barbara remains in the hospital and needs blood donors for more transfusions. She is also having trouble sleeping and requests tapes of Pastor Jack’s sermons.”
ButlerWebs.com
God Bless America! Amen.
All this makes me wonder about attitudes. As an Australian, I feel we’re in some of the same boats as you guys and girls are in. The lefties here are generally Labor though, our socialist party (your libs; our libs are conservative, up to a point) for people who are not loony enough to be either Green or “Femocrat” (the latter are almost a non-entity lately, having taken a real hiding in the last election).
I suppose the average Aussie – if the press here can be believed – hates Bush, dislikes Americans as a result, and thinks Canadians are cool; and they have these attitudes BECAUSE of the press. I’d like to think I’m wrong here, and I see good in sites like this and people like the majority of yourselves, but it amuses me too, because accent-wise we can’t tell you guys apart!!!
In my own case, I suppose I speak a bit differently to others, though not because of training or culture, as I have little to none of either! But I was highly amused when New Zealanders had to ask where I came from, because they could not tell! Mind you, I’ve also been “accused” here of being a Brit, and one of the accusers WAS a “pommie” who did not believe me when I told him I was a “dinky-die Aussie”…
I’d say “Vive la difference”, but that’d upset any non-Quebecois out there…
God bless you all.
Kyla, I take my hat off to you.
RG
The guy (above) who blamed Trudeau was right. Nationalism has to have an “other” to feel superior to, and Trudeau told us what we wanted to hear: that we were superior to the Americans, making us the greatest people on the planet. I think a lot of that smug contempt sort of simmered under the surface until the start of WW4. Then, Canadians’ conviction that the war was right (see the polls at the time) combined with their guilty desire to hang back from the fight and let the Americans do the work, led to one of those “revenge of conscience” moments. The result has been a teeth-bared, foam-flecked explosion of hatred for America that took every better-balanced person by surprise. I’m still shocked at the bigotry I see around me every day. And amazed that the people uttering that hate think THEY are on the moral high ground.
I’m an American, and although I’ve never lived in Canada, I’ve spent vacations and such in Vancouver whenever I’ve gotten the chance. I fell in love with the place as a teenager, when my dad was one of the engineers designing the Skytrain (gad, I’m dating myself!). I also know a fair number of Canadian expats here in the States.
I have to say that the times I’ve been over the border, I’ve never had anybody be unfriendly to me, nor have I been lambasted for my rather overt conservatism. I suppose I have a lot less experience than most of y’all, and it’s been quite a few years since I’ve been to Canada, but honestly, I’ve found Canadians to be just as nice and pleasant as the stereotype.
Just wanted to chime in from down here in “the Great Satan”, “Imperial Amerikkkkka.” Barbara is what is semi-affectionately known as a “moonbat.” Its not really her anti-Americanism that qualifies her for that moniker, and it has nothing to do with her being Canadian. This whacked-out perspective earns it, in spades…
“Conservative/radical Muslims are an extreme variant of the christianist right in America – they’re inherently undemocratic and irrational, that is, they’re ultimate goal is gov’t by religious decree.”
Anyhow, I had the pleasure of briefly visiting the Maritime Provinces last summer, and I must say, its no wonder you folks up there are plumb crazy! All those green trees pumping oxygen into the atmosphere explains it! 🙂
Seriously though, I enjoyed my visit, but have been greatly saddened by the descent into European socialist lunacy that much of Canada is embracing. I sincerely hope that folks like most of y’all will keep the light of sanity shining brightly up there, and as importantly, continually present sound and convincing evidence to Americans that Canadians aren’t all hostile nut-jobs, an impression that your government and most of your media seems intent on reinforcing. (Or are they just blithely stupid?)
Ramblings from Sin City, located a long way from the Bible Belt.