State of the Union Address…

I know, if anyone invaded Canda we would be called in to defend them

Keep in mind, if the US got into a Third World War, Canada would be the first country to rally behind us.

@Yanny:

Keep in mind, if the US got into a Third World War, Canada would be the first country to rally behind us.

exactly.
and not just with material goods either.
D:S - i realize you were kind of joking, but here are some facts:
By US standards, Canadian defence spending is abysmally low, but at just over over $12 billion Canada is in the top 10 per cent of military spenders worldwide. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) lists the defence spending of 160 countries in 2001, with Canada ranked at 16.1 The former US Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, in its last report, used 1997 figures to rank Canada 16th from the top of a list of 167 countries (and 6th from the top in military spending per soldier).2 The International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) in London ranks Canada as the 7th highest military spender of NATO’s 19 member states (within the top third of non-US members). In a list of 46 European and North American states, IISS ranks Canada as 8th from the top – in other words, Canada ranks within the top 20 per cent.
In terms of the personnel strength of the armed forces (regular military personnel), IISS ranks Canada 11th out of 19 in NATO, and 17th out of 46 in Europe/North America.
The one measure by which Canadian military spending has ranked well below the global average over the past several decades is as a proportion of Gross National Income (GNI).

now why would a country with so few enemies require such spending as to be in the top 10% of the world with one of the smallest populations (30 million people)? Nato and peacekeeping commitments are the first to come to mind. We have token defence in terms of our Arctic Rangers, as well as a reasonable naval patrol, however the vast majority of our resources are in NORAD, NATO and UN peacekeeping forces. So shut up.
:P

Those are some big numbers, Sir Cystic Crypt o_o;;
Yay Canada! ^_^

6th largest per soldier. Thats because you have so few.

Deviant…
I thought someone out there might enjoy the fantasy :P .

Thought I’d get more objection from California :wink: .

yourbutt…
So lotsa Kuwaitis in New Jersey, eh. Maybe they’ll change the name to New Kuwait :lol: !

Well Guest, CanadXian mXilXitary power lXies Xin non-combat orXiented forces, lXike NORAD.

hint hint

Oops!
Previous Guest is me.

we build and sell nuclear reactors, and as well we likely could have the capability to develop them in a few years, but i believe that we have none, nor have we any intention to be involved in the arms race to any degree. It seems to be against our national psyche to be a “nuclear power”.

Hey, could we go back to bashing the “governor” of California? That was the best thing I’ve read on-line in a long time. I’m sure bashing Canada could be fun, but I’d rather leave bashing my heritage alone. :D
Anyway, since I got in here late, I want to say that I did see the Washington governor’s speech. Didn’t you just love how he said that the Democrats supported the President and then went on to tear him apart. I mean, come on, I know he wanted to criticize him, but did he have to further prove his hypocrisy by saying he was supporting him? I just love how he gave us his entire family history. I’ll never ever forget that he works serving Washington only a mile from where his dad used to work as a servant in a house. Touching. Sniff wipe a tear from my eye Yeah, overall I like Bush as a President, but I would like to have a little more info before I completely back his moves.

BTW, Canadians are nice. I went there a couple years ago with my family. My dad needed a nickel and some lady we’d never seen and probably will never see again gave him one. That was cool. And two of my classmates are Canadian (that makes three of us in the class), one of them can actually choose to become a Canadian citizen. (Although, I really hope he choose to take American citizenship.) :)

dIfrenT, I haven’t seen you posting for a while. Remember, us Californians need representation too! :wink:

Hey, could we go back to bashing the “governor” of California? That was the best thing I’ve read on-line in a long time.

Yes, such as how Governor Davis wants to increase the car registration fee by three times. Talk about robbing the poor… :-?

I mean, come on, I know he wanted to criticize him, but did he have to further prove his hypocrisy by saying he was supporting him? I just love how he gave us his entire family history. I’ll never ever forget that he works serving Washington only a mile from where his dad used to work as a servant in a house. Touching.

Yes, I can agree with you. I wanted a rebuttal, not the life story of the man! :o But I am terribly sorry to say, almost every single Asian person I know resorted to that story of “my hardships and my journey” for his college application… :-?

He is probably the most hated man in Washington State, because of the legislation he proposes. He raises money, drafts initiatives, and the initiatives ultimately pass by a majority vote of the citizens.

Seems, strange if he is the most hated man in Washington State if he has the support of the citizens. :wink:

He’s not really hated, its just that few like him, because of his lying about his finances, but they like his legislation.

dIfrenT, I haven’t seen you posting for a while. Remember, us Californians need representation too!

Yeah, we don’t want people to think that all Californians are apathetic about our “governor.” I’ve been really, REALLY busy - midterm finals. Anyway, I hadn’t heard about the car fees. I think Davis is way beyond moronic (or imbecilic, or stupid, or just-run-over-my-head-with-a-dump-truck-because-I-have-no-brains-to-hurt-anyway :lol: ) Apparently, he’s keeping all the funds for the prison system, and cutting all the other ones that affect law-abiding citizens. Did you know he made a bet against the Florida governor Jeb Bush during the Superbowl? Betcha he won’t use his own money to pay it (unless he absolutely has to).

Man, D:S, I didn’t realize people would so blatantly ignore the basic law of the land like that. Hello! What happened to “of the people, by the people, for the people”? Scratch that state of my list of states to live in. I’d rather stay here in California.
I wish I could end this on a more positive note, but nothing positive comes to mind in this case. ttyl

The voters are not unreasnoble, they just want more spending and less taxes. :)

Can you say, hello casino?