Comments on: Parrish Insults Bush, America Boycotts Canada

By: Allan

Allan — Sun, 21 Nov 2004 03:33:01 +0000

Right Roz! Let’s discuss what to do about it and by the time we decide on what course to take the crisis is over because a million Rwandans are dead. Or a million Sudanese. Or a million Cambodians.

Murder is murder, genocide is genocide, atrocity is atrocity. Deciding whether to attempt to stop it or not should not cramp anyone’s brain too much.

By: jane m

jane m — Sun, 21 Nov 2004 00:49:40 +0000

Jen

Interesting analysis of hurt feelings, anger and withdrawal. Yes, most of our emotions and reactions are basically quite similar whether we experience them in our personal lives or on a national level of our pysche. You draw a rather interesting analogy from life. C’est la vie!
;(

By: Spool32

Spool32 — Sat, 20 Nov 2004 21:33:10 +0000

My pappy always told me, “Never buy a taco from a Canadian”.

I’m not sure how that relates, but I still live by those words. They’ve never failed me!

By: Jen

Jen — Sat, 20 Nov 2004 10:15:02 +0000

I’d like to jump in and take a wack at clearing up the whole “Boycott–reasonable reaction or immature silliness?” question. First of all, though, I should mention that I’m a military wife and staunch republican, social as well as economically although I’ve been known to take off on a friday night and hang out with “the other side” because my best friend of 16 yrs is liberal AND gay and it means so much to him to have me be part of his circle of friends. My point in mentioning this is that it IS possible to disagree on some very important issues and share the love at the same time. When he starts leaning too heavily on me about my views I am quick to remind him of the time we all went camping and a leak in the roof of the cabin, right over one of the beds, resulted in his sleeping with my husband and I instead of the cold hard floor. (I got the middle…YAY me!) The threat of telling his friends that he slept with not one, but TWO republicans usually ends the onslaught and restores humor. lol
Now, as for boycotting. In my opinion, this is much like when my husband and I have a spat, he loses his temper and crosses that line saying way too much in a very hurtful manner and I have no desire to partake in some of the better aspects of marriage for a time. I boycott his body ya might say. He calls this “getting cut off out of spite” but I disagree. It’s not something I’m doing to punish him at all…I’m simply not in the mood after all is said and done, for a time anyhow. I don’t want to, and it is my body, why should I have to if I don’t want to?
In my opinion, boycotting is much the same. My money, why should I have to? Is it not my choice if I should happen to not feel like going to visit a country that I feel has crossed that line? Or purchase their products? I wouldn’t enjoy myself at all if I went anyhow. I would feel like dirt if I gave them my money. More so than I did in the first place. Why should I have to do that if I simply don’t feel like it and don’t want to? Nothing at all immature about that. As a matter of fact, I would think it would be immature of anyone to suggest I should have to and I get the feeling that this boycotting by Americans makes others angry not because they think it immature but because they know that it will hurt their economy. They want us to let them do and/or say anything they like about our nation, our president, our choices, and us as a people without carrying any responsibility for their actions/words. Demanding we line up in drives like mindless sheep to the slaughter handing over our hard earned dollars. Well, get mad I say, call me immature if that makes you feel better even. I’m not visiting Canada this year like I normally do. I worked hard all year for this vacation and no way am I going to have it ruined by going some where I don’t feel welcome and don’t want to be anyhow.

But hey, what do I know?

By: Zumkopf

Zumkopf — Sat, 20 Nov 2004 03:49:44 +0000

You wanna talk childish, my Canadian friends? Childish isn’t refusing to buy from those who hate you and wish your designs to fail; that’s sanity. Childish is to act like the proverbial two-year old, secure in the knowledge that no matter how many times you tell Daddy you hate him, he’ll still feed, house and protect you. Sadly for America, we are stuck with a childish Canada, because in protecting ourselves, we end up protecting you, whether we want to or not.

Jane M hit it on the head. Getting smacked in the teeth by your friends is infinitely worse than getting the same from the French. And it isn’t so much a matter of disagreement over Iraq; plenty of room for that. The Swiss didn’t help, and we’re not annoyed at them. The Mexicans didn’t help, and we yawned. The Argentines stayed home, and we went on our way. No, it’s the virulent anti-Americanism spewed from a plethora of Canadian sources that we considered friends. I was in Montreal when the invasion occurred, and bluntly I was floored by the vitriol. And it hasn’t stopped since. Parrish is hardly alone. And she wasn’t disciplined until today. And it wasn’t for hating Americans, but mocking Labor. That Parrish survived politically until this day really says it all, don’t you think?

So spare me the “lone idiot” theory. I’m also among those staying south of the border, and not purchasing goods from north of it, for the duration and some time beyond. It’s about all I can do to Canada to express my displeasure, short of giving y’all the Taliban Treatment. Which seems even more unfriendly. You don’t like the boycott? Then do what is necessary to end it.