Where does Canada stand? Who stands for Canada?
1. You wouldn't like the answer.
2. I will stand for Canada.
If you recall, I said I was interested in the way people think. One night I was reading the forum, and it hit me what I perceived to be the core issue that differentiates the US and Canada. I put it together with a few things I knew, my friend told me, and the discussions on this board.
I could be wrong. But if I am, tell me in a nice way. Remember this is the internet, and I have limited experience with Canadians in very large groups.
It's this. The heart of the United States beats as one. I don't hear that same heartbeat from Canada. Have you been to the Indy 500, where 250,000 screaming fans stand and sing the "Star Spangled Banner?" There is a moment when it happens then - we are one.
Have you seen any hockey games? The same thing occurs with our anthom.
Have you ever heard the deafening roar at Texas Stadium when the Cowboys runs onto the field? That would be a more local example. All fans - and many are foreign - merge into one.
Same thing occurs within the NHL or the CFL for local teams..... do you think we golf clap during those things?
Have you ever seen the National Guard standing armed against every building for as far as the eye can see? Have you ever seen tanks roll down the streets of a major Canadian city?
We have war games here in Halifax, air shows, Remembrance Day.....
.... heck, every single time one of our soldiers are killed in the line of duty, their names, ranks, division, everything is postered all over the media accross the nation, their bodies are shown loading up on the plane back home, shown when they come back to Canada, and if the family wants their funeral public, then it is also shown to the country. In between all of this, there are biographies and people talking about the things they have done.
Yet when I look at US media, it's all numbers and figures, with hardly any mention of names, let alone faces put to the names.
Why is this?
Have you felt the power of your country - have you seen it?
Nuclear missiles and tanks are not all of what makes a country powerful.
You might call this patriotism, and that's OK with me. But Canada is so loosely populated, claiming multi-culturalism every 5 mintes, and you're right - no outstanding leader has come from Canada to bring your country to the forefront. Right or wrong: The United States stands firmly together.
That's the problem I personally see within the US, which you just said...... Right or Wrong.... when you are wrong, you should stand up and try to correct the wrong.... not just pump your arms and whoot "USA, USA" against those trying to point out those problems.
Standing firmly together isn't Democracy, as it is only one voice... once voice is something like communism..... if you have only one voice, then how do you know what you as a country are doing might be wrong or not?
Down to Texan: Love it or leave it. We don't want no multi-culturalism here. We made our own culture from our history and our people, and by God, learn our language, obey our laws, don't drive like you are the only one on the street, follow our traditions, and put your hand over your heart. Would hurt nothin if you practiced your manners either.
BTW, we don't blush.
Uncle
Then that isn't a democracy either..... and forcing everyone to agree with you, or your ways, isn't democracy. How can you claim to be "The Leaders of the Free World" when you guys dictate what is free and what is not based on your own personal standards? Esspecially when you don't want others who are different from you in your country to "Cloud" your judgement?
You boast about the US being so united and having One Voice..... yet you have the Republicans and Democrats, you have your strong religious, and you have those who want more liberty in their lives, you have those who are for the option of abortions, and those who are not..... those for gun control, and those who are not...... those who want proper sexual education in their schools to prevent teen pregnancies, and those who want to remove Sex Ed from schools and throw in Creationism, expecting that good little kids won't have sex until they're married.
You have Blacks still fighting for equality and your natives are not much better off then our own.
You have people still for the War in Iraq and staying the course, and then you have people who have opposed it from day one and want your men and women back home where they belong.
Those are just for starters..... the US isn't anymore unified then Canada, and if anything, it's less united.
However, when it comes to patriotism, which all your examples show, both citizens of both countries are damn well proud of the countries they live in respectfully..... I don't question your patriotism, don't question ours.
If we wern't as unified as we were, and we wern't patriotic, chances are, we would have allowed you guys to take us over years ago.... then we could live and act just like you guys, without question or doubt.
We have many differences and many political parties, because we are diverse, we understand how diverse we are, and we embrace it..... there is no one solid answer or solution to everything, and the more questions, the more doubt, and the more voices expressing concern allow us to question if we're about to take the right path or not.
Our diversity allows us to be given more then just one or two options, but several, and sometimes even more. Our questioning, our diveristy, our differing points of views help us think through our actions and learn from our past mistakes.
The whole concept of "Love it or Leave it" doesn't sit well for me. When you have one point of view, or there is a majority supporting one point of view, and one or two people start to question or doubt that course of action..... do you expect to ignore their points of view, freedom of expression, call them unpatriotic and expect them to leave the country?
Just to make things easier, or just to avoid the possibility of being wrong??
I suppose when you kick out and ignore all those who oppose your views, then you have to be right, right?
And just because your paticular race or religion was there first and you setup your own history, you're going to tell me that anybody else who comes to the country legally and becomes just as much a citizen as you, is not allowed to start his or her own history, or democratically change things they may feel is wrong with where they live or their country as a whole?
Where do you get off telling others how to live, what they can or can not do? I thought the US was supposed to be all about freedom and liberty...... now I guess it's freedom and liberty based by those who have more white christian folk representing them in the government?
You may feel your nation is unified and all great..... I and many others see it as something totally different.
I'm not saying this to piss you off, or to directly offend you, but you presented your own observations of my nation.... I am merely returning the favor.
