A lot of other countries are mocking our "Election"
(including us Americans) and the jokes are funny
but think about the following from a CANADIAN newspaper.
********************************
America: The Good Neighbor
Widespread 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, war- mongering 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!"
(including us Americans) and the jokes are funny
but think about the following from a CANADIAN newspaper.
********************************
America: The Good Neighbor
Widespread 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, war- mongering 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!"
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