> Of course we realize that. And, being Canadian, we like to think that it's *because* we are the United State's best friend that we were not mentioned. When you're listing your friends, it's not necessary to mention the one that's always hanging around. The attitude has been that when you offer help freely, you don't expect to be thanked - you just do it because it's the right thing to do.
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> I haven't posted to this forum on this topic because I've found that the words I write down are weak echoes of the emotions I feel. I think, though, in my role as a citizen of Canada, I can say unequivocally that we all mourn with you. We all feel the horror. We all want to help. And we don't need to be thanked.

You know what? When I started reading your post - just the fist few lines or so - I got this sinking feeling. Something kind of like "oh, great; now we get people whining because we didn't pay Canada 'due respect' or whatnot." But you didn't do that. My suspicions were totally unjustified, and I was quite glad that I actually read that whole post. What you said was amazingly mature and kind, and instead of trying to tear America down, you were reassuring; instead of demanding an apology for what was assuredly a grievous oversight, you told us "hey, it's okay; don't worry aboot it." I have a lot of respect for that.

In short, I think the world needs more people who can think like that. :-}