Canada Plans Draft-Dodger Monument

Canada Plans Draft-Dodger Monument
Tuesday, September 21, 2004

 
NELSON, British Columbia — After burning their draft cards during the Vietnam War, tens of thousands of Americans avoided jail by fleeing to Canada.

Many settled in the small town of Nelson, British Columbia (search), just across the Washington state border. Now, 30 years later, the mayor of Nelson and some other Canadians are planning to honor the draft dodgers with a two-day festival and a larger-than-life monument depicting a Canadian helping two scared American men.

Though the festival and statue unveiling are still two years away, the war of words is just beginning.

Veterans of Foreign Wars (search) leaders are outraged by the monument, as are others in the United States who see the plan as a slap in the face. Some have written to Nelson officials to say they’ll never visit the town again.

The Canadian government did nothing to discourage Americans from heading north of the border so many years ago. In fact, then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (search) rolled out the red carpet, saying the draft dodgers had his complete sympathy.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,132971,00.html

Uh oh another Fox News link
 


You would think Canadians have better things to do like spend money on National Health Care - as opposed to erecting monuments to cowards.

The guy in my avatar gave sanctuary to American GI\'s who deserted from Vietnam.

He is a criminal.

Right.
Damn, I\'d love to see our current PM pull something like that today.

About Canada.. +1 Canada.

Estonia (I think it was) raised a monument over the Estonians who fought with the Germans against the Soviet occupation. The monument had to be taken down though, because some people reacted over the German uniform on the monument. :rolleyes:

We have an all volunteer army now - thus no draft dodgers.  :rolleyes:

Giving  sanctuary to soliders has nothing to do with them being volunteer or not.

If you volunteer why would you desert?  Yes, I know it happens even today, but it is very rare.  Your argument is pointless because it would never happen, but if it did for the sake of arguement on any large scale - "I\'d love to see our PM pull something like that today." -  Yeah I would too... the invasion of Sweden by US forces for harboring US deserters.    Just for fun lets say all of our troops in Iraq alone decided to desert to Sweden - your pseudo socialist country couldn\'t handle the influx of so many people at once who:

1. Don\'t speak your language
2. Make up a group larger than your entire army - which could be interesting... since they are breaking the law anyway, why not take over Sweden!

Anyway, back to reality - it is one thing to "dodge" a draft - it is completely different to go AWOL.  Just ask that Korean War deserter who was trying to hide out in Japan.  They will eventually catch up with you - sooner or later.  Both are wrong, but one is definitely worse than the other.

Originally posted by GigaShadow
If you volunteer why would you desert?  Yes, I know it happens even today, but it is very rare.  Your argument is pointless because it would never happen, but if it did for the sake of arguement on any large scale - "I\'d love to see our PM pull something like that today." -  Yeah I would too... the invasion of Sweden by US forces for harboring US deserters.    

Also it is one thing to "dodge" a draft - it is completely different to go AWOL.  Just ask that Korean War deserter who was trying to hide out in Japan.  They will eventually catch up with you - sooner or later.  Both are wrong, but one is definitely worse than the other.

LOL

I see what you mean (our current PM is too much of a "bend-in-the-wind" guy anyway, thats why I said "I\'d love to see our current PM pull something like that today"), and yes I know the difference.

If America opened it\'s arms to people from another country who were trying to avoid being forced by a dictator to fight in a war, We would think of ourselves as "God\'s Country" helping the unfortunate.  When it\'s another country opening it\'s arms for Americans avoiding war, we think they are jerks.

Hence we aren\'t a dictatorship.

How dodging the draft automatically makes you a coward I don\'t know.  What if you just didn\'t believe in the cause you were being force to fight for?  I mean, if it were me, no way I\'d go to Vietnam, but I would go to a war like World War II.  *shrug*

Do what you\'re told.  Submit to authority.  Go to a pointless unjust war that was started with a ruse, then kill and die so that GE can increase their stock value.  I guess if you don\'t go along with it, that makes you a coward to some people.

The Vietnam war was wrong, and as much as the conservative forces of this nation would like to rewrite history and turn it into some great patriotic enterprise, IT\'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN.  It was our second greatest national fiasco behind the annihilation of the Indians.  As far as I\'m concerned, if you served in Vietnam, that\'s fine.  I will never say a word against a vietnam veteran, but they shouldn\'t talk shit about people who had the balls to avoid that war.

Originally posted by Coredweller
Do what you\'re told.  Submit to authority.  Go to a pointless unjust war that was started with a ruse, then kill and die so that GE can increase their stock value.  I guess if you don\'t go along with it, that makes you a coward to some people.

The Vietnam war was wrong, and as much as the conservative forces of this nation would like to rewrite history and turn it into some great patriotic enterprise, IT\'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN.  It was our second greatest national fiasco behind the annihilation of the Indians.  As far as I\'m concerned, if you served in Vietnam, that\'s fine.  I will never say a word against a vietnam veteran, but they shouldn\'t talk shit about people who had the balls to avoid that war.

Conservative forces??  Who exactly got us (the US) into that war?  John F. Kennedy.  Who escalated our involvement in that war?  Lyndon B. Johnson - both Demorats.  Who had a plan for pulling out of Vietnam?  Richard Nixon - a Republican.  The hypocracy of your claim about rewriting history is laughable.

Yeah Core, it took real "balls" to go ROTC (Run Off To Canada) in a VW Bus held together by bong water and pigeon $hit.  :rolleyes:  

Personally, I think they should have been stripped of their citizenship.

Yes, I blame Lyndon Johnson for the war.  I\'m sure he\'s writhing in hell right now.  There\'s no telling what Kennedy would have done if he had lived.  Our force in Vietnam was tiny at the time of his death.  Nixon took office in January 1969.  His "plan for pulling out" was bullshit to get himself elected.  He continued the escalation.

This is not a "Democrat vs. Republican" argument they way you\'d like to see it.  My problem is with all these prowar, prodefense, promiliary kooks who are trying to rewrite history to make Vietnam look like a good idea.  Both parties were to blame.  The Corporations were to blame.  The so-called military industrial complex was to blame.  The whole thing was a mistake.  Those who chose not to participate in the mistake are not cowards.

Originally posted by Coredweller
Nixon took office in January 1969.  His "plan for pulling out" was bullshit to get himself elected.  He continued the escalation.

Really?

December 31st 1968 - American military strength in South Vietnam is 536,100

December 31st 1969 - US troop strength in South Vietnam is 474,000.

December 31st 1970 - American military
strength in South Vietnam is 335,800.

August 12th 1972 - The last American ground combat troops leave South Vietnam; 43,500
airmen and support personnel remain.

November 30, 1972 - American troop withdrawal from Vietnam is completed, although there are still 16,000 Army advisors and administrators remaining to assist South Vietnam\'s military forces.

Bullshit huh?  Going from half a million to 16,000 is escalating right?  Learn your history.

http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/vietnam/index-1969.html

Originally posted by Coredweller
My problem is with all these prowar, prodefense, promiliary kooks who are trying to rewrite history to make Vietnam look like a good idea.  Both parties were to blame.  The Corporations were to blame.  The so-called military industrial complex was to blame.  The whole thing was a mistake.  Those who chose not to participate in the mistake are not cowards.

This had nothing to do with corporations or the "military industrial complex".  You are missing the big picture - this war was a part of the Cold War that went hot.  A mistake, I would have to say yes as our own policies handcuffed us so victory was not possible.  Coupled with a S. Vietnamese government/people that wanted the US to do all of their fighting and dying for them.

As for those burning their draft cards and running away to Canada - it was the fashionable, rebellious thing to do in those days.  :rolleyes:  Drugs and sex as opposed to fighting in Vietnam - yeah that takes guts.