- Ann Coulter is a loudmouth ignoramus who spouts her outrageous
nationalist inaccuracies on American television with little challenge from
the empty talking heads who interview her. But she finally found someone
to stand up to her, in Canada--and she was exposed for the arrogant fool
she is. Interviewed by the Canadian Broadcasting Company's Bob McKeown
for the investigative TV broadcast "The Fifth Estate," which
devoted an hour-long January 26 special to how U.S. media have been highjacked
by conservative bullies, Coulter was berating Canada for not sending troops
to Iraq when she displayed her empty-headedness in the following exchange:
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- Coulter: "Canada used to be one of our most loyal
friends and vice-versa. I mean Canada sent troops to Vietnam - was Vietnam
less containable and more of a threat than Saddam Hussein?"
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- McKeown interrupts: "Canada didn't send troops to
Vietnam."
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- Coulter: "I don't think that's right."
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- McKeown: "Canada did not send troops to Vietnam."
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- Coulter (looking desperate): "Indochina?"
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- McKeown: "Uh no. Canada ...second World War of course.
Korea. Yes. Vietnam No."
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- Coulter: "I think you're wrong."
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- McKeown: "No, took a pass on Vietnam."
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- Coulter: "I think you're wrong."
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- McKeown: "No, Australia was there, not Canada."
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- Coulter: "I think Canada sent troops."
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- McKeown: "No."
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- Coulter: "Well. I'll get back to you on that."
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- McKeown tags out in script:
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- "Coulter never got back to us -- but for the record,
like Iraq, Canada sent no troops to Vietnam."
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- You can see the entire exchange by clicking here.
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- Of course, Coulter was dead wrong. In fact, Canada's
attitude toward America's war in Vietnam was extremely critical under several
governments of our neighbor to the north. For example, when Prime Minister
Lester Pearson--who'd won a Nobel Peace Prize for his role in defusing
the '50s Suez crisis-- gave an April 2, 1965 speech at Temple University
calling for a pause in U.S. bombing of Vietnam, he was the subject of rather
notorious treatment by Lyndon Johnson at their subsequent meeting: LBJ
grabbed the much smaller Canadian by the lapels, lifted him off the floor,
and hollered, "You pissed on my rug!"
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- Pearson's successor, Pierre Trudeau, signaled his attitude
toward the war in Vietnam when he granted political asylum to tens of thousands
of draft-age Americans who fled to Canada to avoid having to fight in Vietnam,
saying: "'Those who make the conscientious judgment that they must
not participate in this war ... have my complete sympathy, and indeed our
political approach has been to give them access to Canada. Canada should
be a refuge from militarism." (How one wishes the current prime minister,
Paul Martin, would take the same position with regard to those war resisters
in uniform who have gone to Canada because of their opposition to what
the U.S. is doing in Iraq.)
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- This is hardly the first time Coulter has invented "facts."
To take just one more example, David Corn last year wrote a Nation web-post
recounting how Coulter claimed, on the Chris Matthews Show, that George
C. Scott had turned down his Oscar for the movie "Patton" because
he was protesting the "critical" treatment of the general by
Hollywood liberals. And even when Matthews challenged her on it and told
her why she was wrong, she persisted in her falsehood.
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- The historically ignorant Coulter should be hiding in
shame, and owes the Canadians an apology for insisting on her blatant untruth--while
network bookers who continue to invite her to guest on their shows should
be hiding under their desks if they maintain this empty-headed, epithet-throwing
fictionalist on their rosters. (Thanks to the Canadian correspondent of
This Is Rumor Control for spotting and providing the transcript of Coulter's
on-air comeuppance).
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- © 2005 DireLand
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- Comment
Alton Raines
- 2-9-5
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- I can't stand Ann Coulter, myself, but when she's right
... she's not an 'ignoramus'. The author of this piece need have only done
a 2 second google and see if Ann was right or not before going live with
it online. Some of these leftist hotheads who spout off are just as loathsome
and ridiculous as their right wing counterparts and often as misinformed.
Sheesh! There were indeed Canadian Vietnam Veterans!! And a memorial to
prove it, Mr. Ireland. If you wanna go after Ann, go for it, but get your
facts straight. You make the left look as stupid as she manages to make
it look on a regular basis.
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- See http://www.glanmore.org/cdncas/memorialair.html
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- Comment
Richard VanHall
2-9-5
Jeff,
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- This site, http://dede.essortment.com/canadasvietnam_rgwv.htm,
indicates that there was no official Canadian Army involvement in Vietnam.
Instead "Canadian Vietnam Veterans" refers to Canadian citizens
that joined the United States Army. Coulter was wrong.
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- Richard VanHall
Comment
VT Roberts
2-9-5
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- The technicality of this issue is rather obvious. Coulter
is right and wrong, it has to do with perceptions -- The perception of
a neutral Canada during this period is belied by the fact that Canadian
industry supplied $2.47 billion worth of war material to the United States
between 1968 and 1973 through Defence Production Sharing Agreements. More
than one third of all Canadian defence sales during these years - includinig
aircraft parts, shells, and even napalm - were destined for use in Southeast
Asia. However, Canadian Prime Minister Lester Pearson declared that the
shipment of weapons directly to Vietnam "would be incompatible with
our role" as impartial observer in Vietnam. Therefore Canada shipped
its weapons and related equipment to the U.S., and from there they made
their way to battle in Vietnam. Pearson, a recipient of the Nobel Prize
for Peace, stated that "equipment goes into the general inventory
of the U.S. armed forces and may be used for such purposes and in such
parts of the world as the U.S. government may see fit."And more than
40,000 Canadians served with the U.S. in Vietnam...
(http://www.generationwoman.com/article.php3?story_id=172)
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- The CBC itself (http://www.cbc.ca/asithappens/vietnam/part2.html)
- reported in great detail on Canada's support for the
war...
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