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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!
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