From: Gene McAloon 

On Thu, 2 Sep 2004 09:32:41 -0400, "John Beamish"  wrote:

>We still study the war of 1812 in our history texts.  It's interesting to
>see the reaction when it comes up in conversation.  There's Canadian-style
>indignation but it's still indignation nearly 200 years later.
>
>I think most Americans truly do not understand how -- for decades and,
>perhaps, centuries --  Iraqis and Muslims will view the US-led invasion of
>Iraq.

If Canadians remember 1812 at all it is only because so many resent the US
today, not because the US was once militarily threatening, but because
Canadians resent almost everything that is foreign and resent themselves in
the process.

When they at long last started to lose their Britishism, it was replaced
not with Canadianism, but Americanism. Canadians are still searching for an
identity and insofar as American culture seems destined to dominate Canada,
naturally the US is resented and such passing trivia as 1812 still galls.

Repeating Phil's nonsense about Iraqis remembering practically forever the
US invasion of their country is another mistake. The fact of the matter, in
direct contradiction of what Phil claims, the Iraqis have been invaded so
many time by so many different countries and empires the relatively benign
US invasion will not be remembered at all. The Brits invaded Iraq in the
'20s and who, including Iraqis, remembers that and why would they?

You have got to have something like hundreds of years of occupation and
cultural influence such as that of the Turks or the Mongol devastation for
the Iraqis to remember it. The idea that somehow Orientals have longer
memories than Westerners is pure fantasy of course.

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