Kendall - you're certainly partly right about that. Canada's blessing is that it is a small power without any real enemies, in the usual sense.

I've always been very doubtful, however, that the nuclear umbrella actually protects us. Had there been a war we would have been fried to a crisp precisely because of that nuclear umbrella. And there nearly was a war with the Warsaw Pact on at least 2 and maybe 3 occasions, due to either political tensions or misadventure.

My impression is that countries are in far less danger when they have a small but efficient conventional force, and no nuclear weapons whatsoever. No one needs to fire nukes at someone who doesn't have nukes to fire back at them...or a huge army to invade them with.

I realize that wasn't the case with Japan in 1945, but the USA just couldn't resist trying out the damn things to see what they would really do...specially after spending all that money making them! We've had lengthy discussions before on Mudcat about that one...

I once heard a joke about how we could reduce the defense budget of Canada by demobilizing the armed forces and simply installing a series of loudspeakers all along the border which would broadcast a voice saying "We surrender!" over and over again in the event of an attack. Believe me, no one would fire nukes at a place like that! After they came in we would gradually seduce them by plying them with Tim Hortons donuts and Canadian beer. They would soon like us as well as their own cousins, and we could get on with important things, like having song circles, discussing hairstyles and so on.

I recommend this approach over the "blow 'em all up" theory any time. After all, they are relatives of ours. Ordinary people just like you and me is what they are.

- LH