Ice roads over Lake Ladoga saved Leningrad during the Nazi seige of World War II.
Here’s a terific website on the history of ice roads in Canada, with lots of pictures that make you scratch your head wondering “How the hell . . . ?” The first page has historical photos that illustrate the nature of the people who developed ice roads. The second page has recent photos of huge loads being moved. Freight Broker Training - Schools Near You, Licenses & More
A road that goes over the ice. When winter comes, and bodies of water freeze over, a road can be constructed on the ice. (See, e.g. “Ice Road Truckers.”) When spring comes, the road melts.
It should be noted that they don’t contruct a road over the ice, in case you’re getting that impression, BG. The ice IS the road, they just plow a path and mark it.
Plawing a path (and keep it free of snow on a regular basis) actually has the effect of strengthening the road; snow insulates, and if exposed the road part actually gets colder and freezes more, assuming continuous subzero weather.
He lost that fight, but the point is, he fought it. When the matter was being discussed he was mightily opposed to it.
My point is not “Harper’s just like Bush”, and it’s not even “He’d be a republican of the Bush stripe” although I believe that to be the case. The point is, you’ll recall, that we tend to follow the US’s lead with a bit of phase delay. A PM that will cancel climate research projects then rent out the equipment intended for that research for the purposes of arctic oil exploration does not show a more progressive attitude than previous governments, but a less progressive attitude.
I didn’t say there was a 1:1 correlation. I was just saying that when the US moves right, we follow suit a few years down the road. Ten years ago the US had a government that supported invading countries under false pretenses and that ignored scientific evidence in favour of business interests. Now we have one. The US has since taken a tack somewhat to the left, and I expect in a few years we will too. I think you’re taking my comparison far too literally, and I don’t think Harper not being exactly like Republicans in all things invalidates my claim that when the US leans right, we follow suit years later. Otherwise we wouldn’t have given Harper, leader of the most rightward-leaning party that matters, a majority after he was found in contempt of Parliament.
Woman, actually, by the name of Elke Babiuk. And in re-reading some articles I realized her victory crowing came after the fact (I wouldn’t be surprised to learn she’d been pestering Farrell about this, though). But getting my facts straight didn’t actually change my mind. In fact, other details that arose as I refreshed my memory solidified my opinion:.
["But city resident Elke Babiuk, who has spent more than 20 years fighting water fluoridation, says she’s pleased. “I think public awareness has grown significantly, especially because of the internet, social media, lots of information out there right now, freedom of choice has always been important as well,” she told CTV Calgary.
Councillor Gian-Carlo Carra, who voted to end fluoridation, says the science just isn’t there to justify water fluoridation"](http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Health/20110209/calgary-water-fluoride-110209/)
Junk science, rejecting an offer of expert opinion then claiming the science isn’t there, no public opinion asked for being interpreted as a victory for those who value freedom of choice, all this sounds very 2003-American to me.
I don’t buy it, though. You’re cherry-picking examples - some of them highly questionable, to say the least - to try to prove a trend that I don’t believe exists. Canada is NOT moving to the right, generally. Canada is on a distinctly leftward trend, by its own standards, in a variety of areas - consider the acceptance of gay marriage, for instance, an area in which Canada is not just ahead of the USA but the great majority of the Western world - and rightward in others, but in general is not substantially more or less conservative than it used to be.
Well I hope you’re right.
Minor nitpick: the US actually has a larger land area, which is (I think) the relevant figure. All that water in the territories wasn’t used much for transport until recently, after all.
Woody, and a lot of bitchn’ about language. You can’t shovel shit there on behalf of the government without speaking both official languages.
In that case, if the OP’s hypothetical were to come to pass . . . that would completely change the complexion of the “Official English” debate in the U.S. We could hardly bring NB or any Canadian province into the Union, without at least leaving in place the language rights that French Canadians have already won. And, as nobody could offer any rational grounds for privileging French over Spanish . . .
Well, it’s all purely hypothetical, of course. Is there any active political movement or organization in Canada or any province of Canada – even, of the sort that appears to exist only as a website – for merger with the U.S.? (South of the border, the only such I know of is the Expansionist Party of the United States, which does appear to exist only as a website.)
If your standard is “one person with a website” then there pretty much has to be. I mean, there’s 33 million people in Canada and we’re arguably the most internet-addicted people in the world. If the Timecube guy can have a website, anyone can.
If your standard is anything past a crazy person with a website, not really.