TRIBUTE TO THE UNITED STATES
This, from a Canadian newspaper, 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! Wear it proudly!
This, from a Canadian newspaper, 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! Wear it proudly!
