The reason for the "tense" U.S.A - Canada relationship.

[glarius]

I'm tired of hearing people talking about the "tense relationship" between Canada and the U.S.A...Jane Taber on CTV's Question Period just brought it up again. She said that there may be a surprise gift (re softwood lumber solution) from the Bush government to Canada at the upcoming meeting of Bush and Harper, since Bush is happy that Harper has taken over from the Liberals....Have they all forgotten the great relationship Chretien had with Clinton? Actually, Clinton had a good relationship with most if not all of the other foreign leaders when he was president. Unlike Bush, he did NOT treat other countries like they were satellites of the U.S.A... Does it not occur to any of these clowns that the sticking point in the country to country relationship just might be George Bush?
P.S...This so-called gift from Bush is not a gift but what Canada is owed according to the rules of arbitration in the trade deal. Remember there have been 7 or 8 rulings on this issue, which have all gone in favour of Canada by the arbitration board, which was made up of an equal number of American and Canadian members.

[JeffR]

1. Well said

Your P.S. is a point Americans need to hear.

:kick:

[Nikki Stone 1]

6. Agreed. Kicked and recommended

:kick:

[Viva_La_Revolution]

2. Something to do with the missile defence system too. He told them

he would go ahead, no matter what they said about it? ... brain is failing, somebody help me out..

[ixion]

3. the only people who 'get along' with this (mal)admin

are lying, bloodthristy thugs, IMO.

I dare someone to prove me wrong. ;-)

[glarius]

4. Remember when Bush first took over he made a big deal of his "friendship"

with Mexico's Vicente Fox?...and Russia's Vladimir Putin?...Now he's barely on speaking terms with either of them. I especially remember the Fox thing because it has been the custom for many years for a new American president to make his first visit out of country to Canada. Bush pointedly went to Mexico first to meet Fox and declared Fox his good buddy....:puke:

[JeffR]

7. Remember when he forgot to mention Canada in his

post-9/11 speech to Congress?

[glarius]

8. Actually I don't think he "forgot" at all....Can't remember who it was

(it may have been David Frum) I heard say that it was left out on purpose.

[dogday]

5. Bush just makes friends and influences people

everywhere he goes

NOT

:wtf:

[Lisa]

9. Bush reminds me of a guy who is always whining about his ex-wives!

He complains that wife #1 was always cheating on him, and at first you kind of feel sorry for the guy. Then he says that wife #2 decided she wanted a career instaed, and wife #3 wanted to move to a different city, and wife #4 decided to get a cat even if he said he didn't want one ....

And pretty soon you realize that there's a REASON why he's had so many failed relationships with different people. The one constant in the story is him -- HE's the problem! Bush complained about Chretien, then he said that Paul Martin (surely not everyone's choice for a Mel Hurtig lookalike contest) was too anti-American. And Harper hadn't even been sworn in, when the White House slammed his Arctic policy.

The vast majority of Canadians get along just fine with Americans. We have American family members, friends, and business associates. We love Americans -- we don't like Bush because we suspect that he is not only a threat to us, but violating the ideals upon which the United States (our neighbour and cultural/economic partner since "day one") is based, and abusing the trust of the American people.

[glarius]

10. I agree wholeheartedly with what you say.....

It seems to me that Bush starts out thinking his new "friends" are just wonderful, for a while, and before long he's fallen out of love with them...Remember how he looked into Putin's eyes and saw his soul?...That love affair didn't last long...And in the beginning he called Fox, America's best friend and now they are barely on speaking terms....

[Lisa]

23. Yes! Keeping track of Bush's whims is like watching 3rd-graders

... squabbling over "who is my bestest friend this week?". Apologies to all the 3rd-graders out there -- but my landlady's daughter came home crying last week after some fickle "most popular" girl in her class decided that she no longer belongs to the "in" group. (Oddly enough, her parents and I have been discussing the situation with her, and she felt a lot better after we drew some parallels between that trendsetting girl, and George W. Bush -- "just because she says something doesn't mean that it's true ... and even if she manages to convince some people to go along with her, she can't take anything important away from you unless you let her ...")

[Neil Lisst]

11. Canadians and their soft wood!!

Hey, we have markets to protect, too, and you guys are undercutting us with subsidized lumber.

I get along fine with Canadians EXCEPT on this lumber issue. If Bush caves on that, he'll have screwed up, which will be good for Dems, of course. It's Democrats who have lost jobs because of Canada's lumber policies.

[glarius]

12. The arbitration committees, made up of Americans and Canadians in equal

numbers have adjudicated this 8 times and all 8 times have agreed that Canada DOES NOT subsidize lumber. Get your facts straight.

[Neil Lisst]

13. I've got my facts straight.

Like I said, you don't want to get stuck listening to a Canadian go on and on about how soft his wood is.

Canada is protectionist, and the US should be.

Those are Democrats losing those jobs.

[glarius]

14. Read these references to prove you are wrong. No subsidies the ruling!

http://www.quesnelobserver.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=27&cat=59&id=615369&more=

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2006/17/c3490.html

http://www.halifaxlive.com/content/view/587/2/

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060317/softwood_subsidies_060317/20060318?hub=Canada

[Media_Lies_Daily]

15. Oh, brother. Cry me a freakin' river.

[SidDithers]

17. You're wrong about subsidized lumber...

just plain wrong.

Sid

[Neil Lisst]

19. See what I mean?!!

[glarius]

22. "See what I mean" is NOT AN ANSWER to my proof there's no subsidy!

Could it be because you HAVE NO ANSWER?...Hmmmm?....Just saying "see what I mean" is MEANINGLESS!

[Minnesota Libra]

16. Let's face it Many World Leaders feel that Bush got in office TWICE.......

.....so that must mean the American people agree with his policies. That doesn't mean other countries have to like it, or put up with it. No country wants to be treated like a kid and be told what to do or how to do it. They want to be treated like equals.

World leaders don't see huge mass demonstrations showing the world how many people disagree with the Bush criminals so the world can only assume we like what we've got.

I can't say I blame the Canadians, French, or anyone else for their views toward this country right now. I'm not at all saying I like it but rather that I can understand it.

[glarius]

18. There is a distinction made between Bush and the U.S.A people by Canadians

In this country (and I would guess other countries), the people do not hold the American public in the same regard as we do Bush. Polls show that the vast majority of Canadians like the American people. It is Bush and his administration we abhor.

[Minnesota Libra]

21. Yes, but my point is that Canadians and others feel that Bush got.......

.....in two different times and so many - not all- but many now see Bush and the American people as one and the same. In other words, "You (Americans) apparently wanted him because someone voted him into office a second time so you must like what you got." That is the mindset many around the world have and I for one can't blame them because we don't see the massive demonstrations of common citizens blasting this administration.

I'm not saying all feel that way but enough do.

[mattclearing]

20. Great points, all of them.

I remember when people simply expected the United States to uphold its basic obligations as an ally.

It has all gone so wrong in the past six years.