Slandering Canada
Reported by Judy - February 8, 2005
John Gibson Tuesday (February 8) used his closing "My Word" segment to slander Canada. Gibson falsely claimed that the Canadians were willing to grant asylum to Usama bin Laden.
Yeah, you remember UBL. The guy who masterminded 9/11, who was public enemy No. 1, who George Bush was going to hunt down, and bring to justice for the deaths of more than 3,000 Americans, and then forgot about. That UBL.
Gibson claimed that some of the 18,000 Americans who want to move to Canada because they can't stand George Bush are being put on immigration waiting lists. So said Gibson: "Usama bin Laden can get on a plane in Lahore, Pakistan (search), disembark in Quebec, declare himself persecuted back home and get asylum quicker than he can say, 'Kill the infidel!' But an American running north, lured by the anti-Americanism and anti-Bushism of the Canadian people and the Canadian government, has to wait years."
Exactly what proof did Gibson offer of UBL being offered asylum by Canada? None, of course. Nor did Gibson point out that people often wait years to enter the U.S. legally because of our own immigration quotas. Apparently never occurred to him that other countries might have quotas, too. With typical American hubris, Gibson probably figured Americans should be able to move anywhere they want to, anytime they want to, and that they would automatically be welcomed.
Gibson's piece was a little tricky to pull off. On the one hand, he wants to take a swipe at Canada because that is one of the the country's on Fox's hit-list. But he also wants to belittle the people who are moving out of the U.S.
He handles the balancing act this way in his conclusion, saying, "My deal is that anyone who wants to go should go and we should never let them back. You like sneering Canadians so much? Fine, stay ... forever. By the way, every American who goes north in disgust over Bush is one less vote for the people who'd like to fight Bush. So the people who oppose Bush are taking a step to make him stronger? Go figure."
Sneering Canadians? I've met lots of Canadians and they have never been anything but polite, courteous, and friendly toward Americans. Some may be anti-Bush (who can blame them?) but they definitely are not anti-American. Besides, the way they say "about" (rhymes with "boot") is just so darn cute.
