Apologies for the OT nature of this post, but I feel that this is an
appropriate time to share these sentiments. If you agree, please pass these
words along to others.
Mike
> TRIBUTE TO AMERICA
>
> The following, from a Canadian newspaper, is worth sharing.
>
> Its subject is "America: The Good Neighbor"
>
> Widespread but only partial news coverage was given recently to a
> remarkable editorial broadcast from Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a
> 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!