Talking To Americans

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: dianavan
Date: 12 Jan 04 - 09:05 PM

Amos, it was 26' not 26" (typo).

Carol C, I don't get it. Why do you feel responsible for what happens in the U.S.?

I was born and raised there but I do not feel responsible for a nation that I inherited by birth. I have never, however, denounced my citizenship. On the other hand, my Canadian citizenship was hard-earned and I choose to do what I can to achieve peace in the world from a country where nationalism is practically non-existent.

You're right about Victoria's raw sewage. Its a crime. We're working on it. As far as the stress on the environment...its the Americans that want our hydro electricity, natural gas, water, wood and fish. Yet we see no effort to reduce consumption.   

Don, are you confusing Canadian food for English food? In Vancouver, you can eat food from every country in the world from high end to the low end (which happens to be MacDonalds, TacoTime and Colonel Sanders). I have never had such a selection of quality food! Organic, free range, wild and home grown, too.

Think I'll go snack on some cold-smoked salmon. I wonder if there is any beer left? Speaking of beer...

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: CarolC
Date: 12 Jan 04 - 10:30 PM

Carol C, I don't get it. Why do you feel responsible for what happens in the U.S.?

There are many ways of making a difference in how this country does things that require being a resident here and being a voter. If all of the people of conscience leave this country, who will be left to do these things? When I leave Canada to return to the US, I feel a deep pang in my gut. I hate leaving Canada. But I was born in the US, and I'm in a position to try to make a difference for that reason. And what I have learned about myself is that I can't just run away at this point in the history of the world. The stakes are just too high. Plus my son lives in this country, and I want to try to help make it a better place for him.

Interestingly, it will be very easy for me to get my Canadian citizenship. By virtue of being married to a Canadian, I'll automatically be eligible in a little less than two years from now. I'm very much looking forward to that, but I'll not renounce my US citizenship.

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: Metchosin
Date: 13 Jan 04 - 12:23 PM

Oh dear, I feel the urge to defend Victoria from misinformation again, although it really doesn't deserve it. Canada's record for environmental stewardship is on the whole, abysmal.

Heric, mousethief wasn't exactly correct, more likely the turds floating by him are his own or Vancouver's and didn't come from Victoria. As reprehensible as it's track record is, Victoria shits primarily in its own nest and because of tidal action in the area of the outfall, little if anything ends up in Puget Sound according to studies done by The University of Washington's School of Oceanography.

As I once pointed out to mousethief, who was fond of dumping on Victoria for the pollution in Puget Sound, the following information points to sources closer to home, that can't handle effluent capacity when it rains. It was current for the time period of his posts:

"In an average year, Metro and Seattle have discharged about 2.8 billion gallons of raw sewage, untreated storm water and industrial effluents from about 110 CSOs in the Seattle area."

"The discharges from CSOs frequently contain large amounts of fecal coliform bacteria, nutrients, suspended solids, and sometimes toxicants. Sediment samples around the Denny Way CSO in Seattle showed highly elevated concentrations of heavy metals and organic toxicants.
Metro has since capped those sediments. The biota around the CSO was harmed by the discharge, and the area is closed to swimming due to high concentrations of fecal coliform."

Also "According to the Washington State Department of Ecology, more than 2 million of the 4.5 million gallons of used oil discarded in Washington ends up each year in Puget Sound.

Vancouver also, seems quick to condemn Victoria, yet is the worst polluter in the PNW and discharges almost twice the amount of raw sewage into Georgia Strait through it's antiquated system of CSO's, than is dumped by Victoria into the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

The fact is nobody is doing an acceptable job regarding the problem, but everyone is looking for scapegoats instead of solutions.

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: Don Firth
Date: 13 Jan 04 - 01:06 PM

dianavan, I understand where Carol is coming from. On the principle that "evil triumphs when good men [and women] do nothing," if all the decent, caring people fled the country to find havens elsewhere, who would be left to oppose the creeping tyranny taking place here? And how long would it be before it grows to the point where you have to deal with it yet again?

And dianavan, just a point: I live in Seattle, and during the past sixty-some years, I've been to Vancouver several dozen times. I've also been to Victoria. And to Toronto. And I've visited my sister and her husband who live in Kingston. And my son currently lives and works in Ottawa. Regarding the comment about Canadian food, that was a joke. I first heard it from a Canadian. Once again—it was a joke.

(Come to think of it, I have a big slab of smoked salmon, and beer in the fridge. Thanks for reminding me.)

Don Firth

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: GUEST,heric
Date: 13 Jan 04 - 02:39 PM

Thanks, metchosin. I hadn't a clue about Vancouver's system. I have raw Mexican turds floating past my house, but I refrain from comment because when the rare rainfall hitshere, the surface runoff produces pollution of incomparable degree, for a while. We all have work to do, everywhere. (I'll let y'all change the subject.)

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: Metchosin
Date: 13 Jan 04 - 08:30 PM

One solution, that my father-in-law suggested years ago, was an individual septic tank, financed by property taxes, that was then hooked to the sewer system.

Effectively, each household would be attending to it's own primary sewage treatment. All that would have been required would have been periodic solid waste removal from the tanks, as in rural areas and that material then to be sterilized for fertilizer and the primarily treated liquid effluent could then have been addressed by a secondary treatment plant for the collective outflow.

Could have paid for itself in less that 10 years and the fertilizer sales would have made a substantial financial contribution to the system's long term maintenance.

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: Cluin
Date: 13 Jan 04 - 08:51 PM

Over 6.3 billion people on this planet, and growing...

That's a lotta jobby, innit?

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: Metchosin
Date: 13 Jan 04 - 09:00 PM

Yup, where there's folk, there's mire.

Subject: RE: Talking To Americans
From: GUEST,rhythmpants
Date: 02 Sep 04 - 04:09 PM

I have lived my entire 40years in a border town and man it seems like the truth hurts (eh?)
Realizing that sometimes geographic locations can share certain attributes does't make you racist guys.
Americans for the most part don't know much about other countries cuz "they don't care!!!"- simple- they have a self sufficient attitude and as far as "not so smart" was George Bush elected as President?, Arnold frickin Schwartzawhatever is a Governor???? You couldn't write a movie that bad!!!
                      If it walks like a duck.................