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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!! |