A Canadian friend sent me this letter and I thought Ya'll might find it enlightening.

TRIBUTE TO THE UNITED STATES       This, from a Canadian newspaper, is worth sharing.         America: The Good Neighbor.   Wide spread but only partial news coverage was given recently to a remarkable editorial broadcast from Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a Canadian television  Commentator. What follows is the full text of his  trenchant remarks as printed in the Congressional Record:   "This Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as the most generous and possibly the least appreciated people on all the earth. Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and  Italy were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and  forgave other billions in debts. None of these countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.   When France was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up, and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.    When earthquakes hit distant cities, it is the United States that hurries in to help.This spring, 59 American communities were flattened by tornadoes. Nobody helped.    The Marshall Plan and the Truman Policy pumped billions of dollars into discouraged countries. Now newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent, warmongering Americans.I'd like to see just one of those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United States dollar build its own airplane. Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tri-Star, or the Douglas DC10? If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all the International lines except Russia fly American Planes?    Why does no other land on earth even consider putting a man or woman on the moon? You talk about Japanese technocracy, and you get radios. You talk about German technocracy, and you get automobiles.You talk about American technocracy, and you find men on the moon - not once, but several times - and safely home again.   You talk about scandals, and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everybody to look at. Even their draft-dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets, and most of them, unless they are breaking Canadian laws, are getting American dollars from Ma and Pa at home to spend here.    When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the Americans  who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke.    I can name you 5000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble. Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake. Our   neighbors have faced it alone, and I'm one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them get kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles. I hope Canada is not one of those."     Stand proud, America! Wear it proudly!!    

-- Mark in NC Fla (deadgoatman@webtv.net), January 25, 2001

Answers

Thanks Mark! God Bless America!

-- Wendy@GraceAcres (wjl7@hotmail.com), January 25, 2001.

Read more about it

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), January 25, 2001.

Hey Mark, that was very cool. Thanks!

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), January 26, 2001.

I remember when this was recorded and played on radio here in Canada. It was quite a statement from a 100% Canadian journalist.

-- Gary (ggiles@north.nsis.com), January 26, 2001.

I think Mr. Sinclair is only partially correct. I remember one time in the late 70's when some Canadians put their own lives on the line to get Americans stationed at our embassy in Tehran out of Iran. That was no small thing. Thanks, Mr. Sinclair and others.

Anybody ever read the book "The Ugly American?"

-- marilyn (rainbow@ktis.net), January 26, 2001.

A fine tribute from Mr. Sinclair and it was 99.9999% accurate.

The 0.0001% correction is that after the San Francisco earthquake, the Japanese government sent a freighter over, loaded with pasturized beer since the local water supplies were disrupted. No wonder San Francisco was rebuilt so quickly :)

(:raig

-- Craig Miller (CMiller@ssd.com), January 26, 2001.

Yes, we live in a great country. Sadly, we have people here that don't even appreciate it.

-- Judy (allsmile@ctnet.net), January 26, 2001.

Marilyn, Mr. Sinclair wrote and broadcast the statement in 1973, so the incident you mention happened after his broadcast. Who knows, maybe the broadcast was (at least partially) responsible for it?

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), January 26, 2001.

Hi Joy. Chronology makes no difference but thank you for telling me. I still appreciate those Canadians. Not too keen on NAFTA but.....

-- marilyn (rainbow@ktis.net), January 27, 2001.

Marilyn beat me to it, but I'd like to add my vote for having some good neighbors in Canada and Canadians. Hey, come to that, I've got cousins in Canada!

-- Julie Froelich (firefly1@nnex.net), January 28, 2001.

It does sort of boggle my mind that here are these two HUGE countries, side by side, with excellent relations between the two, easy border crossings, etc. Too bad the rest of the world doesn't get along as well!

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), January 28, 2001.

Yes America certainly has a lot to be proud of. Which countries are the current benefactors of US aide?

-- John Hill (john@cnd.co.nz), January 29, 2001.

Sorry folks! Of course the question I meant to ask was "Which countries are the current BENEFICIARIES of US aide?"

-- John Hill (john@cnd.co.nz), January 29, 2001.

The following countries received Aid from the USA in the last 12 months:

Iran Ukraine. Somalia Afghanistan Saudi Arabia Tanzania

-- DD (aa@aa.com), September 29, 2001.