Ambassador Bridge Plaque

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• David, please don't jump down my throat too, but I trust you have heard of guys like Theodore Kaczynski and Timothy McVeigh? I'm not trying to be PC or anything, but please consider that the customs officer can't just look at you and tell whether or you you have some deep seeded idealogical axe to grind. They have to identify threats to national security whether it comes with blue eyes and blond hair or dark skin and a turban. And of course you have other issues like drug/gun running they have to watch for. They are just doing their job.

• Apples to oranges John

  First, you need better analogies. Ted Kaczynski was born in Chicago, IL. Timothy McVeigh was born in Pendleton, New York. US Border security guards wouldn't be running 20 questions on their own citizens. So, it's irrelevant to the issue of US Border Security catching them.

  Second, in the middle east, saying the phrase "Death to America" is as common as talking about hockey night in Canada. In Iran, they even say that phrase in their prayers. It's part of the majority culture. They grow up with it as a deep rooted belief and it's encouraged by their respective governments. If I were a US Customs guard and someone from the middle east was wanting to come in, I'd be concerned with good reason as to where they were going and what their business was and in that instance I think profiling by US border security is acceptable and justified. Last I heard, Britian and Canada were at peace with the US. We don't encourage that kind of behaviour in Canada and Britian. So, a US Border Security guard treating me that way is BS.

• David, as a foriegn national you enter the U.S. by priviledge--no more no less. The same rules apply to non-citizens entering Canada. Simple math (which you've pointed out) would show that non-nationals would be subject to a different level of scrutiny than nationals. If you had a bad experience from a service standpoint--I think that's unfortunate. However, you must remember that the job of the Customs Officers (they aren't called guards, for the record) is complex, difficult and multi-faceted. The vast majority of staff on either side of the border do their jobs with professionalism and tact--and the safety of our familities and way of life is the reward.

• David, you missed the point in my analogy. Where these two guys were born, citizenship, etc. has nothing to do with it. I brought those two guys up because they are examples of "white guys" who you apparently think should should be regarded as innocuous by virtue of their skin colour. But they sure surprised everyone, didn't they? The point is, when you approach U.S. customs to get in, the fact you are white doesn't exempt you from having to justify to that officer's satisfaction that you should be granted entry to the U.S.A. They aren't in the hospitality industry. JT said it right when he called the job "complex, difficult, multi-faceted". If bustin' chops every time they saw someone with a turban was all they had to do, life would be much simpler for them.

• John,

  I didn't miss any point. You're analogy is irrelevant. You can't use Ted Kaczynski and Timothy McVeigh as examples because they're US Citizens and it's irrelevant to the cross border issue. To prove your point, you'd have to cite Canadian citizens who went into the US and caused acts of terrorism to that level. Otherwise, you haven't proven your case. It's just not in our culture. It's absolutely ridiculous to cite US citizens committing acts of terrorism against other US citizens to prove that US Border security guards are justified in interrogating Canadians. Can't think of any "white" Canadians, huh? Well, then, you haven't come close to proving your case.

  As for trying to argue that all entrants to the US should be treated equally, that's total BS. Comparing Canada to the middle east is again an apples to oranges argument. Canada's economy is highly integrated with the US. Most of our exports go to the US. We have the North American Free Trade Agreement for free trade, which they don't. We share our army bases in Canada with the US. We share our national baseball and hockey teams. Billons of dollars of Canadian made goods are shipped to the US over the Ambassador bridge. Thousands of Canadians in Windsor cross the border every day to work in Detroit. When 9/11 happened, a lot of Canadian firefighters headed down to New York to help out. We have Canadians go to the US and help out with the US Habitat for Humanity efforts when there's a disaster in the US. Even our personal records are shared--you get a traffic ticket in Michigan, it shows up and affects your insurance policy in Ontario, which is not the case with other countries. We're like a 52nd state. Not legally, but it's pretty much perceived from the high level of integration. There's even groups out there who advocate that Canada should switch to the US dollar. We share cultural roots from the UK. We're like brothers. We're family. And, you don't treat family like that. The middle east doesn't come anywhere close to that level of integration between Canada and the US. So, no, it's BS that I as a Canadian citizen would be allowed to be randomly subjected to being interrogated to the same level as someone from, say Iran. It's unnecessary, arbitrary and unreasonable. When I visit the US, it's like visiting family.

• If you think it's "BS" that you should be held to the same standards as any other foreigner wishing to gain access to the USA, then that's your prerogative. I'll leave it at that.

• My 68 year old father recently took my 15 year old daughter to the Dream Cruise in his '57 Corvette. My daughter was shouted at to remove her glasses as well as to shut off her cell phone (which she was not using it was simply sitting in her lap). The car was also thoroughly inspected. So here is my father supporting an American event and this is the ltreatment they receive. Needless to say my daughter was scared by this. Talk about overkill.

• I think you are all missing the point - WHAT A BEAUTIFUL PLAQUE!!
  Thank You for taking a picture of something I have been longing to get out of my car and just touch. It's a beautiful piece. I've been searching for a great picture of it for some time now...Looks like you got the best yet. Do you think I could print it to hang in my house?

• The plaque is beautiful. Cell phones, sunglasses and stereos are a no-no at the border. Too often, it seems, people take the process of crossing the international boundary too casually--yes, down here in Windsor it is part of our daily lives, but it is still an important and serious process. Anyone crossing in either direction with a child that is not their own, ought to expect extra scrutiny--and rightly so. Are you aware how often missing and./or abducted children have been intercepted by Customs on both sides of the border? Take the process of crossing seriously--or dont take it all--it's a priviledge, not a right.

• Oddly enough I must have passed this plaque countless times without having paid much attention to it. So yeah, thanks to Andrew for helping us stop and take note. Actually I crossed the border this weekend to go to Ohio and took the time to look at it this time as we drove back over the bridge. Once again, passed through U.S. customs without a hitch. We actually spent more time getting back into Canada as the lines were moving a bit slower, so I actually think we might have lost 10 minutes of our lives coming back, versus 1-2 minutes going into the U.S. No big deal...