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I got a good chuckle last night from one of the sub-plots on "West Wing," involving some drunken hunters crossing the border into Canada and creating a minor international incident. One of the White House military advisers kept trying to advance contingency plans for a military response, much to the dismay others. Aside from the humorous way it was presented on the show, this tickled by funny bone because it reminded me so much of something my youngest brother used to go on about.
When he was in high school (or maybe it was earlier than that, I'm not sure anymore), he used to give us these hysterically funny lectures about the dangers of a Canadian invasion. Something about how woefully unprepared we were to counter a surprise attack from the Great White North, and how we should be preparing to fend off their attempts to reposition their nation to a climate more hospitable to human life. Or something like that...
Of course he pointed to the growth of the National Hockey League as a warning sign of this invasion. In his rants, this was simply the first wave of the invasion, an attempt to plant the cultural seeds that would pave the way for the eventual take over. Similarly, when the first "Tim Horton Donuts" franchises started appearing in upstate NY, this was clearly to be taken as further evidence of the impending assault. (My brother was quite relieved to see a "Krispy Kreme" franchise open in Buffalo...finally, someone seemed to be launching a counter-offensive!)
I couldn't help thinking about my brother's silliness last night, which of course added another layer of humor to the sub-plot. If only the writers had known. I can just picture Toby on a rant, sarcastically spewing some of my brother's lines.
Then to top things off, I find this today:
LYNDEN, Wash. (AP) — A practical joke shut down a U.S.-Canadian border crossing for nearly four hours just as the weekend was getting under way.
A 42-year-old man was stopped at the border around 4:40 p.m. last Friday.
During an inspection of his vehicle, "a crude device thought to be an explosive" was found under a seat, Corporal Dale Carr of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a news release.
The inspection area and a duty-free shop were immediately evacuated, spokeswoman Paula Shore with the Canadian Border Services Agency (search) said, and highways going north and south were closed.
Investigators subsequently determined that the "suspicious device" was harmless, Carr said.
It turns out the man's co-workers in Olympia, Wash., had put ball bearings into a metal tube and crimped the ends.
They placed the device in his vehicle to annoy him, the idea being that "it would create a rattle that the driver would find difficult to locate," Carr said.
The man was questioned and released. He will not face charges, Carr said.
It will be up to U.S. authorities to decide whether his co-workers face charges, Shore said.
"It's not a good idea to play practical jokes at the border," said Shore, clearly not amused.
I have to wonder, is there a connection here somewhere?
When he was in high school (or maybe it was earlier than that, I'm not sure anymore), he used to give us these hysterically funny lectures about the dangers of a Canadian invasion. Something about how woefully unprepared we were to counter a surprise attack from the Great White North, and how we should be preparing to fend off their attempts to reposition their nation to a climate more hospitable to human life. Or something like that...
Of course he pointed to the growth of the National Hockey League as a warning sign of this invasion. In his rants, this was simply the first wave of the invasion, an attempt to plant the cultural seeds that would pave the way for the eventual take over. Similarly, when the first "Tim Horton Donuts" franchises started appearing in upstate NY, this was clearly to be taken as further evidence of the impending assault. (My brother was quite relieved to see a "Krispy Kreme" franchise open in Buffalo...finally, someone seemed to be launching a counter-offensive!)
I couldn't help thinking about my brother's silliness last night, which of course added another layer of humor to the sub-plot. If only the writers had known. I can just picture Toby on a rant, sarcastically spewing some of my brother's lines.
Then to top things off, I find this today:
LYNDEN, Wash. (AP) — A practical joke shut down a U.S.-Canadian border crossing for nearly four hours just as the weekend was getting under way.
A 42-year-old man was stopped at the border around 4:40 p.m. last Friday.
During an inspection of his vehicle, "a crude device thought to be an explosive" was found under a seat, Corporal Dale Carr of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a news release.
The inspection area and a duty-free shop were immediately evacuated, spokeswoman Paula Shore with the Canadian Border Services Agency (search) said, and highways going north and south were closed.
Investigators subsequently determined that the "suspicious device" was harmless, Carr said.
It turns out the man's co-workers in Olympia, Wash., had put ball bearings into a metal tube and crimped the ends.
They placed the device in his vehicle to annoy him, the idea being that "it would create a rattle that the driver would find difficult to locate," Carr said.
The man was questioned and released. He will not face charges, Carr said.
It will be up to U.S. authorities to decide whether his co-workers face charges, Shore said.
"It's not a good idea to play practical jokes at the border," said Shore, clearly not amused.
I have to wonder, is there a connection here somewhere?
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