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[Shields Carstarphen <shields AT tibco.com>]

One of the best editorials I have ever read.

******************

TRIBUTE TO THE UNITED STATES
This, from a Canadian newspaper, no less, is worth sharing.
     
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, 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!