It's not just the southern border: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says it's "legitimate" to discuss building a wall separating the United States from Canada, as well." - CNN, Aug. 30, 2015
Jan. 1, 2020
After three years of feverish construction, the long-awaited Canada-U.S. wall has finally been completed. At a dedication ceremony held at the heavily fortified Detroit-Windsor border crossing, President Donald Trump and the Canadian prime minister jointly conducted a ribbon cutting. Due to security concerns, however, the ribbon cutting was carried out via simultaneous video transmissions.
The project was unilaterally launched by the United States as Canada seemed somewhat reluctant to participate. Having experienced decades of peaceful cooperation, Canadians didn't see the sense in spending billions of dollars on a border wall.
March 1, 2020
It turns out that the new structure may benefit Canada more than the United States. First and foremost, it has provided a means to stem the tide of illegal firearms that used to easily cross the border into Canada. Although gun crime and deaths in Canada were nowhere near the levels they are in the U. S., now they're declining even further.
May 1, 2020
Canadians experience yet another unanticipated benefit: a drastic reduction in so-called medical tourists, Americans coming into Canada with false papers to take advantage of free health care coverage. Thanks to the wall, those folks are now finding it difficult if not impossible to get in. The resulting financial savings are reportedly in the millions.
June 1, 2020
The new wall has cut off the southern flow of oil and natural gas from Canadian wells to American markets. The industry was at first concerned by this loss of a giant market until they realized that there was an even larger, more lucrative market across the ocean in China.
July 1, 2020
Unexpected advantages have also occurred in the area of sports. Given the severe restrictions in inter-country travel caused by the new wall, Canadian pro hockey teams quit the NHL and formed their own Canadian professional league. No longer having to pay players in U.S. dollars, the new league has already doubled its number of teams and is thriving in a market unconcerned with appealing to uninterested fans in southern climes.
Aug. 1, 2020
Canada realizes there's at least one disadvantage of the 5,000-mile barrier, namely a marked reduction in American tourists. On the other hand, the new wall has stemmed the tide of Canadian tourists to the U.S., which more than offsets the loss of dollars spent by American tourists. With little or no chance to visit Florida or Arizona in the winter, Canadians have been forced to spend their dollars at home, thereby significantly boosting the country's gross national product. Plus, as one Canadian wag put it: "I'd rather visit France, anyway."
Sept. 1, 2020
The United States paid for the construction of the wall and so far has absorbed all maintenance costs. However, having seen the advantages of walling themselves off from their American cousins, Canadians now seem more willing to share some of the ongoing expenses, particularly those associated with the 1,500-mile extension required to wall off Alaska.
November 1, 2020
As is so often the case in politics, the law of unintended consequences has come into play and it looks like the U.S. is no longer as keen on keeping the new border structure. In fact, at a recent electoral rally held near the Skagway, Alaska border crossing into British Columbia, Vice President Sarah Palin urged the Canadian prime minister to "tear down this wall." At least for now, however, the answer is likely to be a firm but polite "no thanks."
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