An Open Letter to the United States of America
When California was on fireplace, Canada despatched water bombers to assist. When our nation is burning… You despatched us a criticism letter. America, we have to discuss.
Dear United States Congress,
Thank you a lot to your deeply involved letter about our wildfires “ruining your summer.” Truly touching.
We apologize that our forests, after a long time of file warmth, drought, and company deforestation (a few of it by your personal timber giants), had the audacity to catch fireplace and interrupt your BBQs and lake weekends.
But because you’re so involved, let’s assessment the scoreboard:
When California was engulfed in flames, Canada despatched water bombers. No letter. No whining. Just assist. Because that’s what associates do.
We routinely ship extremely skilled Canadian firefighters to California, Oregon, and Washington when your forests are burning down quicker than a rant out of your president. We don’t ship a letter complaining concerning the smog drifting north, we ship assist.
When your hospitals have been overwhelmed and out of PPE in the course of the pandemic, we shipped masks and gloves south. At the identical time, Trump threatened to chop us off. No letter. Just assist.
When 9/11 occurred, we took in 33,000 stranded passengers and fed them in Gander, Newfoundland. We didn’t ship a letter complaining about our tourism season. We opened our doorways. You would possibly strive it someday as a substitute of burning the planet for marketing campaign money.
Meanwhile, you ship us… a letter.
You write with concern about your “ability to go outside and safely breathe.” We’re involved about that too. We’ve been involved for many years as your firms have belched extra carbon into our shared environment than nearly another nation on Earth. You lecture us about “active forest management” whereas concurrently gutting your personal environmental protections and subsidizing the very fossil gas business that’s setting our planet on fireplace.
All the whereas, we’re truly investing in inexperienced vitality to forestall these fires earlier than they begin. You would possibly strive it someday as a substitute of burning the planet for marketing campaign money.
You wish to discuss what’s “ruining the summer”? Let’s discuss concerning the uncooked sewage and industrial waste you’ve been dumping into the Great Lakes for a century. Let’s discuss concerning the invasive species that hitch a journey in your ships and decimate our ecosystems. Let’s discuss concerning the acid rain out of your factories that has poisoned our lakes and forests for generations.
Oh, and let’s discuss that “outdoor recreation” you’re so fearful about. You know, the identical open air you’ve been paving over with pipelines, fracking, and oil rigs. The identical air you’ve been fortunately polluting for many years, accelerating the local weather disaster that makes these wildfires worse.
Your letter mentions arson, however conveniently ignores the first accelerant for these fires: local weather change. A disaster you will have actively lobbied to disregard.
So please, spare us the lecture. Don’t you dare complain concerning the smoke in your sky when you will have helped construct the fireplace.
You accuse us of “a lack of forest management”? Please. Our forests are twice the scale of the state of Texas. And guess what? We didn’t spend a long time denying local weather change whereas burning coal prefer it was going out of fashion.
We Canadians love our summers, too. We additionally love having the ability to breathe. But most of all, we worth friendship and reciprocity. Things which can be clearly briefly provide south of the border as of late. Real associates present up with buckets, not criticism letters.
If you’re so determined for recent air, perhaps cease voting for politicians who suppose the one inexperienced coverage value supporting is the colour of their marketing campaign donations.
Instead of sending snarky letters, how about sending fireplace crews? Or perhaps as a substitute of funneling your large protection funds into extra tanks, border partitions, and that Big Beautiful Bill funds that props up ICE and billionaires, you possibly can assist battle precise world threats. Like local weather change?
Next time there’s a disaster, perhaps look within the mirror earlier than you look north.
With all of the well mannered Canadian sincerity we will muster,
Canada and The Planet D
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Leave a remark beneath with:“Signed, [Your Name]” (and be happy so as to add the place you’re from!)
Let’s present that actual associates present up with buckets, not criticism letters.