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| Great White North | |
| Are U.S. tourists making a political statement? | |
| 2005-10-26 | |
Some have blamed the rise in gasoline prices. But that doesn't make sense. Travelling from city to city within the U.S. is often a longer drive than heading up to Canadian cities like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, all close to the border. More to the point, the sharp drop in tourism was measured in August -- before hurricane Katrina spiked gas prices. Some have blamed the strengthening Canadian dollar, saying it has eroded Canada's economic attraction to Americans. But that doesn't make sense, either. The Canadian dollar is worth roughly 85 U.S. cents today. Last October, it was 81 U.S. cents (and it was 84 U.S. cents last November). Is an extra cent or two really the reason we have the lowest tourism from the U.S. in a generation? If the dollar is the reason, then one would have expected to see this tourism drop last year -- because between October 2003 and October 2004, the Canadian dollar rose from 76 cents to 81 cents -- a bigger jump than in the past year. And in the year before that, the Canadian dollar positively leapt from 63 cents to 76 cents, or 13 cents in just one year. How can a three- or four-cent rise in the Canadian dollar over the past year be to blame for falling U.S. tourism, if an 18-cent rise in the previous two years didn't flatten tourism? The obvious answer is that American tourism wasn't hurt by gas prices or currency fluctuations. It was killed by something else that Americans are thinking about when it comes to Canada in the past year. Gee -- what could that be? Could it be that Paul Martin's policy of unrestrained anti-Americanism has had an effect? Could it be some Americans -- not all, but certainly enough to cause August's 5.9% drop -- have made a political statement with their vacation plans, just like they have stopped drinking French wine? Granted, Jean Chretien was anti-American, too. But not with the same bellicosity as Paul Martin. Chretien didn't threaten to divert oil exports from the U.S. to its hostile rival, China, as Martin did. Chretien was sullen toward the U.S. but he was predictable. Martin started as prime minister claiming to be pro-U.S., stating support for continental ballistic missile defence. Then, at the last minute, he did a spectacular about-face, embarrassing the U.S. as it was trying to build international support. True, Chretien was against the war in Iraq. But it was Martin who turned his opposition into a negative attack ad in the 2004 election, smearing the war as an aggressive and hostile venture. Was his target Stephen Harper or George W. Bush? Liberal strategists might claim privately that anti-Americanism is just a campaign trick for domestic political consumption, a way of appealing to NDP voters and demonizing the Conservatives. But Americans are noticing. Their media certainly noticed when Carolyn Parrish denounced George Bush, and wasn't removed from the Liberal caucus until she later committed the only unpardonable sin in the Liberal party, denouncing Martin himself. It's a little rich for Canadian officials to complain about a drop in U.S. tourism, after the spectacle of official anti-Americanism. As retaliations go, a drop in tourism is about as gentle as it gets. But if Martin and company start acting out their threats to interfere with Alberta's oil exports to the U.S., don't be surprised if Condoleezza Rice responds with something a little tougher than a drop in tourism -- say, a one-hour "security inspection" of every Canadian truck crossing the border. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #16 But Rafael,if Canadians were to join the US, they each would be required to have a microchip implant to turn sweet moose lovers into bloodthirsty killbots. It's the law. |
| Posted by: ed 2005-10-26 18:21 |
| #15 The Maritimes are delightful to vacation in. Fortress Louisbourg is especially interesting. Alexander Graham Bell Museum and Bay of Fundy are also quite interesting. Because the Maritimes are so dependent on tourism, I have always found them pleasant to visit. They also exchange US$ at a very favorable rate. Can't say the same for Quebec or Ontario. Had my car vandalized in Victoria. It was just like being in Portland. Until you get above Jasper, the Canadian Rockies are as crowded as Colorado. |
| Posted by: Glemble Angomock2365 2005-10-26 18:20 |
| #14 Why yes they are! FU very much Canaduh. |
| Posted by: Gir 2005-10-26 17:47 |
| #13 If you lump together the Liberal vote with the New Democratic Party vote, the only western Canadian province you'd be interested in...is Alberta. |
| Posted by: Rafael 2005-10-26 17:47 |
| #12 Al-Qai'nada is learning that actions have consequences. And here they thought that socialism would decouple those two things. The poor dears. |
| Posted by: dushan 2005-10-26 13:51 |
| #11 Worked with Canadian Marconi in a previous life and had to make many trips to Montreal. Not a fun experience for an English speaker. I can think of no compelling reason for any American to vacation in Quebec, Ontario, or any of the other eastern provinces. The best parts of Canada are the sparsely populated regions in the West. |
| Posted by: RWV 2005-10-26 13:48 |
| #10 The buffoons to the north do not realize we dislike thier snooty elistist socialistic bullcrap attitude, and would rather spend the tourist bux elsewhere. One sees by the election map that Canada is more politically regionalized than we are. Without Quebec the liberal pary would be a weak sister. The Quebec seperatist party roughly splits the vote with the un-liberals - this is their (liberal) margin over the more reasonable (conservative) Harper, Day, etc... So the liberal problem is a Quebec-Ontario axis, if you will... Martin has to lick just enough Quebecii backsides to keep enough of them in the fold so they don't pick up and leave. If that were ever to happen, as the AzCat suggests, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and maybe a couple of others might look south to be on a "winning team"... |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-10-26 13:22 |
| #9 most americans arent Aren't what? Please complete your sentences in an intelligible manner, preferably using the proper grammar and punctuation you were taught as a child. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-10-26 13:22 |
| #8 bk you just touched on a pet peeve of mine. bk Canadians are Americans. They live in North America, that makes them Americans. Using the term "American" to describe US citizens is lazy, a tool of lazy journalists and the as press too cheap to print out or say United States Citizen in full. When you say Canadian or Mexican it's easy. Saying US Citizen or United States Citizen is a mouth full. Lets quit being lazy. Anyone who lives on the northern or southern Continent is as American as I am. They are citizens of a country with a real name however. I am having my Canadian friends come here this year. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O´ Doom 2005-10-26 13:07 |
| #7 Iâve owned property in Ontario for many years. Over that time I have made some lasting friendships; many of them own resorts and lodges that depend on American tourism. They have always lamented the policies made by their liberal politicians. Their ire traditionally has been directed at Provincial laws designed to alter trade policies. But in the last few years they all have seen a steady drop in American dough. They attribute this decline to a couple of issues. First they believe the decisions to promote more âeco-tourismâ as an offset to declining revenue is not only misguided but directly affects their bottom line. Second is the increase in Anti-American rhetoric at a national level. I believe them to be sincere when they tell me that those decisions are made by the liberal voters mostly in the urban areas and donât reflect their views. Unfortunately they are on the front line and feel the brunt of those decisions. |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2005-10-26 13:02 |
| #6 From experience, I have no use for the place, it's government, it's products, it's services, and alot of it's people. Small minded, nasty, greedy, bellicose, grandiose, and ultimately idiotic. |
| Posted by: MariosTakeOnThings 2005-10-26 10:41 |
| #5 most americans arent |
| Posted by: bk 2005-10-26 09:36 |
| #4 Canadians forget we can watch their CBC news. Blatant anti-us crap prevails just as it does in their big city press. Most Canadians are smart. They should be able to figure this out. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O´ Doom 2005-10-26 01:35 |
| #3 My experience with the Westerners was similar - much longer ago - I met quite a few because we were all in the oil biz in one way or another. Solid folks, smart folks. And the Calgary Stampede was a blast, lol - prolly cuz I still drank back in those daze... |
| Posted by: .com 2005-10-26 01:12 |
| #2 [L]ike negotiate with Alberta for statehood .... I spent a summer wandering around Alberta, BC, & the Yukon a couple of years ago and was very surprised at how prevalent that sentiment was among Canadians. |
| Posted by: AzCat 2005-10-26 00:55 |
| #1 I recall when Martin "came to power" - and there were several articles about him, mainly positive. It was a load of he was pro-business, he wasn't a looney, he was going to be such an improvement over the usual Kool Aid Swilling Swine, yadda³. Lasted about a month, IIRC, before the shine was off and he was clearly just another asshole leading the Northern Asshole Alliance. I'd prefer to do a bit more than boycott Qanada as a vacation destination, y'know? Something with some punch to it... like negotiate with Alberta for statehood or something. A little oomph is called for in our future dealings with Nanook of the Ninnies. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-10-26 00:40 |