Been around awhile, nice to read it again.
"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 5,000 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
"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 5,000 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
